Through the Door to Morrowind
by whydoineedapenname
Summary: Calynn thought she knew Morrowind inside out after playing for hours. But now that she is really in Morrowind, will her knowledge alone be enough when she finds herself taking on a leadership role? This is my first story. Please review! Game spoiler.
1. Through the Door

**All the elements from Morrowind that you recognize are property of Bethesda Softworks. I only own the character Calynn.**

* * *

_Only a few more minutes_, she silently told herself. _I'll only play for a few more minutes. Then I'll go to bed_.

She knew she would regret staying up late to play Morrowind tomorrow, but right now she was in the middle of a quest and just couldn't stop. She was so close to completing it. She never imagined for a minute that she would've become so addicted to this game when her brother first showed her how to play.

Her character on the computer screen skillfully dispatched two rogue wizards in the cavern and reached a trapped door. Out came the Journeyman's Probe, and within seconds (and _after_ saving the game just in case) she opened the door, only to be met by a blinding flash of light.

Then, the dramatic death music played and the program asked if she wanted to load the previously saved game.

Calynn banged her fist on the keyboard in frustration. _So close_, she fumed, then froze as her computer froze in front of her. It began emitting beeping sounds.

She frantically pressed the escape key, hoping the noise wasn't waking her parents. Something on the corner of her eye caught her attention, and when she turned to look, her eyes widened in surprise.

There, on the wall next to her desk, a door was forming. As if that wasn't scary enough, the door looked familiar. Very familiar. It was exactly like the internal doors in Morrowind.

_Great_, Calynn thought as she rubbed her eyes. _Now I'm dreaming. Wonder what'll happen next_.

She didn't have long to wait before she got her answer. The door was flung wide open and a powerful wind sucked Calynn right out of her chair and into the world beyond the door.

_This is not good this is not good this is not good_, Calynn remembered thinking. Almost unconsciously, she reached for her cell phone on the table. She didn't know why she would want her cell phone, and what use it would have, if she was truly sucked into the world of Morrowind, as she believed was happening to her. _Might come in handy, I guess_.

The smell of fresh earth and grass was the first thing that came to Calynn's mind. She was lying facedown on a rough patch of grass.

The second thought made her jump up in apprehension.

She was in Morrowind, she had no doubt about it. If she had had _any _doubt, it would have left the moment she turned around, because when she turned around, she saw the bridge leading to the Foreign Quarter, and on her left, a very curious boat guide was staring at her.


	2. The Mirror and the Journal

Calynn was unsure what to do. Should she approach the boat guide? He seemed friendly enough, but it was hard to tell, with the red eyes and blue-green skin typical of the Dunmer. But what if he attacks her? She probably looked like someone from a totally different planet to him.

_Ha, but I _am_ from a totally different planet than Morrowind_. She thought wryly. While she was holding the internal debate within herself, the Dunmer had moved about five inches closer to her.

_By this rate, maybe he'll be close enough to talk to me in two hours. I better get this over with and ask him about current events, to find out what's going on _.

Her resolve set, she took a deep breath and tried to stride confidently towards the man, or, the _mer_, actually.

"Um, hi?" She ventured timidly. _You stupid! At least try to sound a little confident_, she silently chided herself.

The boat guide responded so quickly she could not catch what he said.

"I beg your pardon?" Calynn asked.

"….." The man babbled.

"Sir, I don't mean any disrespect, but I, ah, have difficulty understanding you."

A flash of annoyance crossed the Dunmer's eyes, but it passed quickly. He slowly repeated his words.

"Under…moon…and…sky…we…greet…you…warmly—" Calynn understood now. It was the typical greeting, one she had heard many times during her gameplay.

"---outlander," he finished.

At first, it didn't bother Calynn that he called her outlander. After all, that was what usually happens in the game. But then it occurred to her that this time she was really _in_ the game, and was a lot closer than she liked to some hostile natives.

"I'm… I'm newly arrived," Calynn said. "Could you tell me…" She thought quickly. "The latest rumors? And services?"

"The soldiers say more and more foul beasts are crossing the Ghostfence every day," he intimated in a lowered voice.

Suddenly, he raised his voice and said, "Lodging can be found in the Foreign Quarter, miss."

Wondering at his abrupt change in demeanor, Calynn turned around. An Ordinator was walking quickly towards them. They were not the friendliest guards in the world, Calynn remembered. Better not to get on their bad side.

"Scum," the Ordinator spat out. Calynn couldn't tell if it was directed at her or at the boat guide. She really didn't care. She wanted to get away from him, and from this world that was creeping her out. She said a quick thank-you to the boat guide and walked as fast as she could towards Vivec, telling herself not to break into a run. She could feel the guard's eyes boring into her back.

Once in the Foreign Quarter canton, she decided to go up to the plaza. Those people in the plaza were more friendly, especially if you were part of the Fighters' Guild or Mages' Guild. A need for a sense of familiarity overwhelmed her, and Calynn desperately wanted to meet someone she could trust. _How do people survive in such a world?_ She found herself wondering.

By now, she had found her way up the ramp from the waistworks to the plaza. She pulled open the heavy doors and stepped inside. On her way to the Fighters' Guild, in which her character was the Master, she caught sight of herself on a mirror.

Calynn gasped and stopped in surprise. Standing in front of the mirror was not the Calynn she knew. The person standing there was dressed in a ragged yellow blouse, plain brown pants, and no shoes.

_How come I didn't even know I had no shoes?_ She wondered.

But what shocked her the most wasn't the clothes she had on, but _what_ she was. She could see plainly the pointed ears and the sharp chin. She was a female wood elf, a Bosmer, with black hair!

_Wouldn't be surprised if I found a silly little journal somewhere here_, Calynn thought as she rummaged through a satchel she had just found at her side. As expected, a book tumbled out into her hands.

She eagerly flipped to the front to see what time period she had landed in. Only the first few pages were filled out, and they were, strangely, in her handwriting. A hard knot began to form in the pit of her stomach, growing more and more as she read through her entries.

_What in the world! _She hastily stuffed the book back in her satchel and could not help but glance over her shoulder to see if anyone noticed her. No one seemed to be looking particularly at her, so she quickly opened the door to the Fighters' Guild and slammed it shut.

A male Redguard looked her up and down. She could see questions in his eyes, but he was silent. She in turned studied him. He was well-built, with intelligent and not unkind eyes. She noticed that he placed himself within reach of the spear in a barrel by the wall.

_Good discipline_, she thought, before she caught herself. _What am I doing? Why did I think that?_

As if in response to her question, the Redguard spoke.

"You choose to spend your time with me? I'm honored!"


	3. Things Get Worse and More Confusing

Readers, I know there are people out there reading this. Can you please leave a review so I know what you like, what you don't like, what you think of the plot, chapter lengths, descriptions, dialogues, etc?

Once again, I do not own anything in my story except the character Calynn. All things related to Morrowind belong to Bethesda.

* * *

"You choose to spend your time with me? I'm honored," said the Redguard.

"As am I," Calynn replied. Then, just as quickly, she was stuck. What was she supposed to say now? Her perusal of "her" journal had not helped matters at all.

* * *

First Seed Day 1 

I told Ingol to order some more paper, because we were running out more quickly than I thought possible. Who knew that being the Master of the Fighters' Guild would require so much paperwork. I had thought it was all about being the best fighter, with skills and cleverness. I guess not. Someone's knocking at the door. I suppose some new recruit wants to join.

First Seed Day 2 

Now that I've finished reviving the guild charter, maybe I'll get some rest. Doubt it, though. There's probably some impossible mission I'll have to go on. Something always happens in Vvardenfell, and then the nobles will call on us to fix the problem. It's a good way to make money though, especially serving out bounties on people who, half the time, don't even know they have a price on their heads.

First Seed Day 3 

I knew it. A new mission came in today, and I don't think any of the members on hand at the moment can handle it. I'll take it on myself. In about an hour, I'll start my journey to Khuul. From there I'll head east on the coast until I find a cave called Samaca. The orders from the Imperial representative said to clean out the cave and "remove" the bandits.

* * *

Those three entries were the only ones entered in the journal. Suddenly, Calynn realized the Redguard had been speaking to her.

"I'm sorry. What did you say?" She interjected quickly.

"Master, I was telling you that there is a change of clothes downstairs," he replied, looking curious at her. No doubt, he was wondering why the Master of the Fighters' Guild (for Calynn was indeed the Master, as she found out when she read her journal) was dressed in tattered clothing and looked incredibly confused.

"Are you all right?" He asked, his voice all concern.

"Yes, yes," Calynn replied, absent-mindedly. What was she supposed to do now? Tell this well-meaning concerned man that she has no idea what he is talking about, and that she is in fact a girl from Earth who mysteriously got sucked into her computer game and is now the master of a guild even though she doesn't know what a master truly does?

She looked at the man again. He was very alarmed by now. Of course, he couldn't be blamed. It wasn't every day that his leader came in looking, well, like one of the commoners. Not to mention the dazed look on her face. And she seems to have lost all of her possessions, including her armor and weapons.

His train of thought was interrupted as the door opened again. Calynn turned around to see who it was.

"Counselor Bero!" The Redguard said. "What a pleasant surprise! What can I do for you?"

Dram Bero, for it was he, turned to Calynn and said, "I need to speak with you. Immediately."

Calynn started. _I have no idea who this guy is, and he needs to speak with me? I know Dram Bero is a counselor of House Hlaalu, but I don't him, not personally_.

The Hlaalu counselor had paused at the door, apparently waiting for Calynn to follow. She did, but she could not fail to notice the worried look that the Redguard cast her as the door shut behind them.

All of a sudden, Dram Bero whirled on her and asked, "How could you have been so foolish? And look what happened to you! You could've died! What were you thinking?"

Calynn, at the moment, was thinking, _I wonder what he's mad about now. Something "I" did? This just keeps getting worse and worse, doesn't it?_


	4. Raig and Valenwood

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Sorry it took so long to update. I'm finally on spring break! This chapter is long and slow, I apologize, because groundwork needs to be laid, but there should be more action coming soon.**

**Ethel Llorak: Thanks for writing the first review, and for the encouragement and the hints. I'll try to make my story more descriptive.**

**Nereverar: I hope to improve my writing some more.**

* * *

Calynn, at the moment, was thinking, _I wonder what he's mad about now. Something "I" did? This just keeps getting worse and worse, doesn't it?_

* * *

She backed up slowly until the exterior wall of the Fighters' Guild stopped her. The counselor in front of her was still waving his hands vehemently in the air, his mouth spouting words she couldn't hear. He was getting closer to her, and frankly getting quite red in the face. If it wasn't such a serious situation, Calynn was sure she would've laughed.

"Hello? Anyone there?" By this time, Dram Bero had reached her and was passing his hands over her eyes.

Calynn gave a start. "Um. Yeah."

"You didn't hear a _word_ I said, did you?" the man asked.

She tried a small smile. "No…?"

His brow wrinkled in the middle, while his eyes searched her face and took in her lack of armour or weapons. This was not what he expected from a friend he had come to trust in the past years. The Calynn he knew was always prepared, whether with a witty retort or with an unerring arrow from her bow.

"Calynn? Are you all right?"

She didn't answer.

"That's it," Dram Bero said, taking her arm and leading her back inside the Guild headquarters. "I don't know what's wrong with you, but you're coming with me. We're not going anywhere until you tell me what happened."

_What happened? How am I supposed to know? _Calynn wondered hazily, letting her eyelids drop. She was getting really tired and wanted nothing more than to sleep. She drowsily thought about when her parents would discover she was missing. _Haha, they would never guess where I went_.

"Let go of her," a cold voice commanded. Calynn opened her eyes to see the Redguard aiming a spear, straight at the counselor.

"Whoa it's all right," Dram Bero said, releasing her arm. "I don't think she feels well. I brought her back for help. Really, I—"

The Redguard's eyes narrowed suspiciously, but he reluctantly lowered the spear. It was true, his leader Calynn had been acting strangely.

"I… uh, thank you for your readiness, uh…" Calynn trailed off. If only she could remember the man's name!

The Redguard and Dram Bero exchanged worried glances.

"Raig," the Redguard prompted. It hurt that she did not remember his name, but she couldn't really be expected to remember everyone's name, could she?

"Raig. Thank you, Raig. I think I'll head downstairs now," Calynn said, going towards the left doorway leading to a different wing.

"Um, Master Calynn? It's _that_ way," Raig gestured to the right doorway. Dram Bero stepped towards her and put an arm around her shoulder.

"I'll take her, Raig. You just keep watch," he said. "Like you always do."

That earned a small smile from the Redguard, who resumed his position opposite the entrance.

* * *

"What do you think is going on?" Raig inclined his head toward the sleeping Calynn on the bed. They were sitting on the two chairs, one facing the door, the other facing the bed.

"I don't know, Raig," Dram Bero said. "We'll have to wait until she wakes up to find out what happened in Samaca."

"She should not have gone," Raig said angrily. "Those contracts… you don't know who paid for them. They just come in, and we're supposed to do whatever they say? What if the people we killed were innocent? What if—"

He stopped upon hearing Calynn's voice.

"You're right." It was no more than a whisper. Raig nearly bit his tongue in surprise. Since when had she ever acknowledged he was right?

"The contract that was issued for Samaca was paid for by a revolutionary movement based in Valenwood," Calynn paused. Was it right to tell them this? She had learned this bit of information from reading online quest walkthroughs. So would telling the people in Morrowind this extra information somehow upset fate or the future? She decided to take the chance. After all, she would be living in this world, and better to have people as knowledgeable as possible.

"Valenwood," Calynn confirmed in response to both men's inquiring looks. "There's a movement going on, one that seeks to obliterate all races, leaving only the…"

"Only the what?" Dram Bero inquired. His breath had quickened without him knowing it, and his heart pounded in his chest. Something was happening on the island, and it didn't bode well.

"Only the Bosmer," Calynn replied.

"But they don't even live here. Morrowind doesn't belong to them," Raig tried to reason. He thought he was the one with the most worries. Calynn was a Wood Elf, so she didn't need to worry. Dram Bero, he has the support of House Hlaalu. While he, Raig, well, the Redguards are not native to Morrowind, nor to Valenwood, and hence can expect no help.

"These revolutionaries," Calynn resumed, "they hired the Fighters' Guild to exterminate those living in Samaca. The 'bandits' we have been hunting down were actually Imperial undercover agents seeking to undermine the movement."

"But that doesn't make any sense. Why would the people of Morrowind support a movement that will only leave Bosmers in the end?" Dram Bero said.

"With bribery. With drinks," Calynn waved her hand through the air. "You name it. Whatever people want, the revolution leaders supply them with it."

For a moment, all three were deep in thought.

"How do you know all this?" Raig asked abruptly.

Calynn sucked in a breath. She knew this question would come, but she did not expect it that quickly.

"I… Ok, this must be very hard to believe. But I'm not Calynn. Well, my name _is_ actually Calynn, but I'm not the Calynn you think I am," she tried to explain, realizing that what she said probably just made the more confused. She held up a hand as they started to ask more questions. They settled back into their chairs, questions still burning in their eyes.

"I was playing on the computer," Calynn could have kicked herself. There was no way they would know what a computer was. "A computer is a tool. It lets you create things that aren't real, like an artist painting a painting. I was painting my picture, and I fell into the picture." There. They understood that, right?

"So, you are not from this world?" Raig asked. Calynn widened her eyes. He was a quick one!

"No," Calynn affirmed. But… an idea gleamed in her mind. "I want to try something. What weapon do I normally use?"

Dram Bero cut in. "Hold on a moment. You do not remember anything?"

"In my game, uh, my painting, I had Calynn use a bonemold longbow," Calynn said. "But I want to know if everything in my painting is the same as everything in this world."

"You, I mean, Calynn uses a longbow too. Her second weapon is the long blade." Raig handed her a silver claymore. As she took it from him, he noticed that her hand automatically grasped the blade in Calynn's own grip.

"What was your idea?" he asked her.

"This," she said, stepping into the practice area and making feints at the practice dummies. Her sword wove gracefully through the air in an intricate series of moves. Her face became flushed and she started to breathe hard. Soon, she stopped. The exercise confirmed her idea; she has taken on all the skills and looks of her character.


	5. Finally Getting Somewhere

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Ethel Llorak, Nereverar: Thank you for continuing to review!**

**The Knight of Laughs: Sure you can use the idea. The more stories, the better it gets.**

* * *

"There, that should do it," Raig said, stepping back and surveying his handiwork. Calynn was now clad in light chitin armor, with the silver claymore she had just used hanging by her side. A bonemold longbow with a quiver of iron arrows rested on a table nearby.

"Chitin?" Calynn asked, barely able to hide the disappointment in her voice.

"Yes, I know. It's not the best armor in the world, but that's all the light armor we have right now," Raig explained. "You—Calynn—had the best set before…" He stopped.

"I'm not complaining," Calynn said, testing the strength and tension of the bow. Gesturing at her outfit, she declared, "These should do for now."

"Pardon me, but while you're here admiring yourself in the mirror, can you also explain to me what you plan to do?" The two companions turned to see Dram Bero's head in the doorway of the room they were standing in.

"I am going to Samaca," Calynn answered casually, turning her back on Dram Bero to adjust the straps on her boots. _Chitin is actually very good material for boots, light and durable_, she thought.

"What?!" Calynn did not think she heard a more shocked tone in her life. Nor did she think she had ever seen a more shocked face either, when she caught the look on Dram Bero's face.

"Surprised?" Calynn couldn't resist teasing him a little. It was odd, but she felt like he was one of her closest friends. She had learned from Raig that the real Calynn had known him for several years, so maybe the feelings were transferred to her as well.

"Anyway," Calynn continued, as Dram Bero's mouth was still opening and closing with no sound being emitted. "The people in the cave should be our allies in our fight to bring peace and stability to Morrowind again. I am aware that they might have been the ones who attacked me, or Calynn, when she first entered the cave."

"Which is precisely the reason why you should not be going back! Even a fish learns its lesson and doesn't go back to the same hook," Dram Bero stated.

A moment of silence reigned, and then a snicker broke out.

"A fish, counselor?" Raig had to ask.

"People, we need to concentrate," Calynn shot stern glances at both men, who had enough sense in them to suddenly become very interested in the toes of their shoes. "Dram Bero, I don't know where you got that fish analogy from, but I am going back to the cave. We need their help, whoever they are, and they might be our only chance of stopping those revolutionary wood elves right now. So, let's go."

"Uh… there is a slight problem," Raig hung back in the room while the other two were already halfway to the staircase.

"What is it, Raig?" Calynn asked impatiently.

"We can't just leave the Fighters' Guild headquarters with no one to guard it."

"Oh, that's right. What about the wood elf always hanging around down here?" Calynn's eyes brightened. _There_, she thought, _one obstacle taken care of_.

Apparently, it was not as easy as that. She had reached the top of the stairs, but neither Raig nor Dram Bero was with her. Turning to look down the stairs, she saw the rolling on the floor, an angry wood elf standing over them. Inhaling a sharp breath, Calynn ran back downstairs, fearing they were being attacked. She could hear the wood elf now.

"What are you laughing at?"

_Laughing? They're laughing?_ Calynn asked herself disbelievingly. _I thought they were hit by some magical attack, and they're rolling on the floor laughing?!_

"Calynn," Raig gasped in between fits of laughter. "You… seriously… thought… of leaving… the guild in the hands of… Baurin?"

"Well, why not?" Calynn was getting frustrated. They had to get going.

"They think I'm going to set the place on fire again," the wood elf, Baurin, explained. "I'm perfectly responsible, and am honored to take care of the place until your return."

"Thanks Baurin," Calynn turned to leave. "Wait a minute! You said 'again'? You set this place on fire?!"

Baurin tried to avoid Calynn's eyes. "I was only practicing my forging skills, and then the fire leapt out of the pit, and it was dancing on the beams and the pallets on the floor, and it was so pretty…"

Calynn clenched her hands and Baurin backed away. But then her whole frame started to shake, not in anger, but in amusement. _Imagine! I almost let her watch the place, and when we returned, we would have seen the whole place up in smokes, with Baurin dancing around telling us how pretty the flames were. Ok, not funny. I need to get back to work. To Samaca!_

The others had come to the same conclusion as well. They got up and dusted themselves off, ready to leave. But, the problem still had not been taken care of.

"Baurin?" Calynn called. "I need you to go across the plaza to the Mages' Guild. Tell the secretary there that you'll be assisting her until we get back. And ask her to check into our headquarters once a day."

"Ok," Baurin answered brightly. "I-get-to-be-a-secre-tary!" She chanted.

Raig shrugged in response to Calynn's inquiring glance. "She's a little… loose in the head, but she's a great scout."

By this time, they had reached the front door of the guild headquarters. Baurin was just entering the Mages' Guild. Calynn closed the door behind her, pulled out a key and locked it.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Raig asked.

"Locking the door," Calynn responded. "She's not going back in. Not without us here."

"But people need to get in. Returning members might need a bed to sleep in," Raig tried to reason.

"That would be a reason why I put a _sign_ on the door," Calynn pointed to the sign that Raig could have sworn was not on the door a moment ago. The sign read, "If you need to get in or a bed to sleep in, please go to the Mages' Guild."

"Oh," Raig managed.

"Oh," Calynn echoed. "Shall we start?"

* * *

The first leg of their journey took them from Vivec to Balmora by silt strider, since Calynn decided she wanted to have some time to read some information about the revolution that Dram Bero had found in Jobasha's shop while Calynn was getting her armor ready. If they went by the Mages' Guild transport, they wouldn't have had time to read.

Disembarking at Balmora, Calynn led them across the river to the Southwall Cornerclub.

"What are we doing here?" Dram Bero hissed. "The fashionable side is over _there_," waving to the other bank of the river.

"We are here to get a meal and to sleep," Calynn stated simply.

"Hey Sottilde," she greeted the woman at the door.

"Hello Calynn, good to see you again. And who might these be?" Sottilde indicated the two men.

"They are my good friends," Calynn said, without identifying them further. She didn't want any trouble starting because of tension between factions. She always thought them bothersome when she was playing the game. Well, now that she was here, she would try to keep them at a minimum.

"As you wish, Master Thief," Sottilde said.

Raig looked at his leader with renewed interest. _Master Thief?! That's something new!_

Without turning to look at him, Calynn answered his thought. "Yes, I was quite advanced in my game, my painting, when I fell in," she whispered to him quietly, while looking out the corner of her eye at Sottilde. Raig understood. She wanted as few people to know about their "situation" as possible.

"Bacola," Calynn called upstairs. "Can I have a room tonight?"

"One room? For all three of you?"

"Yes."

"Ok. Right this way."

"I still don't see why we have to share a room," Dram Bero grumbled.

"Because I don't have that much money. And because we need to leave early in the morning. I'm sleeping across the door," Calynn pushed the bed to the door and sat down on it. "You cannot get out without me knowing it. Which means you two are not allowed to get drunk at the bar downstairs."

"How does she know?" Dram Bero whispered to Raig.

"Beats me," the Redguard shrugged and plopped down on his bed in resignation. "We might as well get some rest. Something tells me we'll need it soon."

They bade each other good night, and soon snores arose. Unbeknownst to them, a shadow passed across the window and fled across the bridge to the Council Club. Six Dunmer were waiting.


	6. Rats to Ald'ruhn

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Ethel Llorak: Thank you, I was trying to end it up a suspenseful note, and the "evil" Council Club seemed like a good idea.**

**The Knight of Laughs: I wonder how your story will continue. It follows the game closely; well done.**

**Nereverar: Thank you for your advice, and for always reading my updates. To be honest, I didn't know what to do with Chapter 5, because I was torn between looking at everything from Calynn's point of view and taking a broader view by incorporating other characters' views. But I see your point, especially since I started the story from Calynn's eyes. I suppose it will help if I imagined myself as Calynn, truly sucked into the game.**

**Amaratine: I would appreciate more of your thoughts. Thanks for reviewing!**

* * *

Calynn awoke to the sound of beeping in her ear. She reached an arm up to slap the snooze button, but her hand met empty air. Confused, she reluctantly opened her eyes and saw… a rat on the ceiling. She thought she could smell its damp fur from her bed.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Calynn jumped out of bed, which she noticed was rather close to the floor and covered by a coarse blanket.

_Ohhhh, that's right_, she remembered with a groan. _No wonder there wasn't an alarm clock. I'm stuck in my Morrowind game, so I shouldn't be too surprised if there's a rat somewhere_.

She turned to look at her companions and was surprised to find them still sleeping. She'd have thought her scream of alarm would have woken them up. That, or the incessant beeping. Now that she thought about it, what _was_ that incessant beeping? She dug around her pillow and found her cell phone, the alarm set at 7:00am.

_Hmm, guess it works on Morrowind time too_, she thought.

"What is _that_?" Raig had sat up in bed without her noticing.

"Uh, it's a cell phone," Calynn was already dreading the explanation she would have to give. "It lets you talk to people."

"Why would you need it when we're talking to you just fine?" Dram Bero.

_Great_, Calynn resisted rolling her eyes. _Now I have _two _people asking me stupid questions about what a cell phone is_.

"I just like it, ok? It's a pretty amulet I keep in my pocket," Calynn said quickly, slipping the cell phone into the satchel that seemed to be able to carry everything. She found this fact quite fascinating. The satchel held her journal, the few bottles of Restore Health potions she found in the Fighters' Guild chest, a lockpick, a probe, a few armorer's hammers, a shield, and a complete change of clothes. Her three dozen arrows were on in a quiver, along with her bow. The silver claymore was in its sheath, along with a useless iron dagger.

_I always wondered about the characters' abilities to carry almost an infinite number of articles. It's like everything in their inventory shrinks to fit in their pocket. Imagine carrying a calcinatory, mortar and pestle… whoa, maybe this satchel is like a 2-dimensional conversion thing_…

"Uh, Calynn? We're ready to go." The two men had on matching netch leather armor, and both were armed with Nordic claymores, a steel crossbow, chitin arrows, and a chitin club.

"Right. Let's go find Bacola," she gave one last surveying glance of the room. Good, they didn't leave anything there.

"Why? We paid him last night," Dram Bero said. Calynn could have sworn he was whining. Apparently he was not much of a morning person.

"I'm not paying him. I'm telling him about his disgusting rat problem," Calynn answered.

"What rat problem?" The owner of the place asked, coming up the stairs.

"When I woke up this morning, the first thing I saw was a RAT," Calynn said, wrinkling her nose and forehead.

"You can't expect the rats to just disappear? Can you? Did it bite you?" Bacola asked, seemingly exasperated by her complaint.

"No, it didn't bite."

"Did it defecate on you?"

"Eww, no."

"Then what's the problem?"

"The problem is, there's a rat," Calynn walked up closer to Bacola. Unfortunately, as a Wood Elf she was much shorter than the Imperial, so the menacing effect didn't really work.

_Ok, now what do I do? These people here don't think it's a problem. Oops! I could've slapped myself on the head. Of course they don't think it's a problem. Rats are as commonplace here as, well, people are. Ugh, one more thing I have to get used to_.

She smiled brightly at Bacola, who looked uncertain at her sudden change of humor. Calynn was thankful that she was the head of the Thieves' Guild, so her strange behavior would be talked of, but not be much cause of suspicion because all the members respected her. At least, in the game they did.

"Well, I guess I am all right. But next time, I do not want to wake up to rat whiskers," she told the owner. "I need to go, so I will see you in awhile."

"Wait, Sugar-Lips wanted to speak with you before you leave." Sugar-Lips… that was the guild master here in Balmora.

"Thanks, I'll see her and be off. Come along, you two," Calynn dragged Raig and Dram Bero downstairs, despite their protests at how interesting the bottles lining Bacola's desks were.

* * *

"Welcome, friend," Sugar Lips Habasi greeted Calynn. "I have heard rumors. There is danger for you here. You must fly away quickly. _They--_" here Sugar-Lips wagged her eyebrows. It was a very strange sight, to see the catlike creature wagging its eyebrows. But then again, the unexpected certainly happens in the game, Calynn thought.

"They," Sugar-Lips continued, "are watching. Be careful when you take the silt strider. May you walk on warm sands."

"May you walk on warm sands too," Calynn mumbled, remembering it was the traditional greeting Khajiits would give. _What did she mean _they _were watching? Ok, Calynn, calm down and think. Who would be the obvious rivals or enemies… Oh no, the Camonna Tong_, she realized with a gasp.

She had read about the quest that Larrius Varro at Fort Moonmoth assigned to get rid of the "bad people." But in her game, she did not yet accomplish that task. She berated herself for not doing that quest sooner. If she had, they wouldn't have to face this problem, when her life might actually be danger from those Dunmer.

_Oh, yes, that's right. My life. What happens if I die? Do I go back to the real world? Uh-oh, what if I don't?! Oh my goodness oh my goodness, this is horrible!_ Calynn found herself trembling and saw Raig peering at her while engaged in a polite conversation with Sottilde.

_Things can always be worse_, she insisted to herself. _I'm here, I'm still alive, I have my cell phone, although it won't do much good, I have some good friends here, and I know more about the game than my brother, which is saying a lot. I can get through this. I just need to go through it all without dying. Not even once_, she acknowledged that it was a hard task. _There's no saving and loading. Just one shot_.

Calynn decided to get moving before she started to panic. Much as she loved the game and had spent hours wondering what it would be like to be an inhabitant of Morrowind, this world was much more dangerous than she would have liked.

* * *

They scurried quickly across the bridge on the far side of town, furthest from the silt strider. Although the South Wall Cornerclub was almost directly across the bridge to the silt strider, crossing the closest bridge would have meant the man on top of the Council Club could see them approaching.

Now that they were on what Dram Bero insisted was the "fashionable" side of town, Calynn tried to think of how to get on the Silt Strider without the Council Club's notice. If she was by herself, she might have used the Mages' Guild transport. But it was impossible with the others with her, and she definitely wanted them along. They needed some sort of distraction.

Suddenly, a Redguard walked up to them.

"I see this land suits you, outlander," he noted to Calynn.

"Stargel!" She exclaimed in a delighted tone. Calynn was not faking the tone either. She was quite delighted, not because she remembered the name of this well-off town wanderer, but because here was the distraction she was looking for. If she recalled correctly, his disposition towards her had been around 85, high enough for him to do her a favor, she reckoned.

"Stargel, you know that house across from the silt strider?" Calynn questioned innocently. _I hope this works, I hope this works_, inside she was chanting.

"Yes," his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You… aren't in league with them, are you?"

"No, not at all! I don't like them and we need to trick them." Calynn groaned inwardly. So much for discretion. She remembered too late that Wood Elves were not known for their speechcraft skills. _Ah, the Moon-and-Star would be helpful right now. Where is it?_ She had no time to follow through on her thought, though, because Stargel was getting suspicious very quickly.

"No, my friend, please help," Calynn was almost desperate now. They had to get away from town before the Camonna Tong came after her. She was sure it was them that Sugar-Lips was referring to. She also had a sense of terror in her, as though she knew something was going to happen soon unless she left. Something bad.

A certain element in her manner must have attracted his attention, because Stargel turned back to her with renewed determination.

"All right. What do you need? I am no friend of syndicate crime leagues."

"I and my friends here," she gestured at Dram Bero and Raig, who nodded briefly at his fellow Redguard. "We need to get to the silt strider. We suspect the people at the Council Club will prevent us from reaching there."

Am I right to trust him? He seemed ok in the game, but… 

Stargel stood in the middle of the street, contemplating.

"I have a plan," he declared, a mischievous and daring grin on his face.

* * *

Calynn passed under one of the arches leading out of town, Raig under another, and Dram Bero under a third. So far, no one seemed to notice their leaving town.

Suddenly, they heard raised voices. One of them Calynn immediately identified as Stargel's. It sounded almost like Raig's voice.

_The gamemakers need to find more voices for the game. All the Redguards sound the same_, the thought flitted across her mind.

Through the low growl of Stargel's shouts, Calynn could also hear the murmurs of an Argonian. She thought she knew this voice too. It must be Hul, who was always walking around the silt strider area.

They needed to get going fairly soon if Stargel's plan was going to succeed.

"Come on," she whispered furiously to Dram Bero, who was struggling in his heavy robes.

_Curse these councilors and their stuffy robes_, Calynn thought. _Why can't they just wear regular pants?_

By now, they were right under the silt strider. Actually, they were on the wrong side; they were outside the wall. But just as Stargel had planned, they could see the silt strider master standing on his platform, and he could see them, although his attention was momentarily drawn to the scuffle in front of the Council Club.

"Your tail was in my way," Stargel insisted.

"You are stupid," Hul countered. Laughter emitted from the roof of the Council Club.

Dram Bero had managed to attract the silt strider master's attention. We need a ride to Ald'ruhn, he mouthed. The silt strider master had nodded his agreement, and the large insect dropped to the ground beside them, and the three travelers climbed in and were soon on the way to their destination.

"That was a close call," Raig commented.

"Yes, it was," Calynn said, unable to help the slight tremble in her voice. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if Stargel's plan had failed.

_But it didn't_, she reminded herself. _We're getting there, stage by stage. I wish my brother were here, so he could help. But no, that would mean he would be in danger too. I wouldn't wish that on him. But he would be so helpful!_ Calynn sighed, then turned to where the two men were bickering on the seat behind her.

"Your tail was in my way," Raig laughed.

"I don't have a tail, you, you, you…" Dram Bero trailed off.

Calynn let a tiny smile escape. These two acted like brothers enough, she though, and closed her eyes for some much-needed sleep.

* * *

I don't know if the silt strider in Balmora actually connects to Ald'ruhn, so I just made that part up. Does anyone know?

Spring break is over now, so unfortunately, I will not have much opportunity to update as frequently (not that my updating is that frequent anyway).

I wanted to put more description in here, but I really felt like posting another chapter before break ended, and it's getting late and I need to get to sleep.


	7. First Contact

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**I just reread the last chapter, and realized that there were quite a few typos there. I apologize. The characters' language is getting more modernized, hope you readers don't mind. If you think the other way is better, I can try to change it back to more Morrowind-like.**

**The Knight of Laughs: It's too bad you didn't get a spring break. And Ethel Llorak checked that the silt strider really does go to Ald'ruhn.**

**Ethel Llorak: Thanks for confirming that the silt strider indeed does travel from Balmora to Ald'ruhn. I'll continue to make an effort to put myself "in Calynn's shoes" so that her thoughts and reactions will be more realistic.**

* * *

From the last chapter… 

"Your tail was in my way," Raig laughed.

"I don't have a tail, you, you, you…" Dram Bero trailed off.

Calynn let a tiny smile escape. These two acted like brothers enough, she though, and closed her eyes for some much-needed sleep.

* * *

"I hate dust storms."

"Me too."

"At least there aren't any more ash storms carrying the blight."

"True."

Upon hearing the voices of her companions, Calynn cracked open her eyes a little and was instantly rewarded with particles of dust in her eyes. She saw Dram Bero huddled on the opposite side of the Silt Strider's shell, holding the voluminous sleeve of his robes in front of his face in an attempt to ward off the swirling dust. Raig, on the other hand, was sitting in the middle of the hollow, the visor of his chitin helm protecting his face from the stinging dust.

"I really _really_ hate dust storms," Dram Bero moaned again.

"Yes," Raig replied. It became apparent to Calynn that this conversation had been repeated many times before when she was asleep. Raig seemed to be losing patience with the councilor.

Calynn sat up to relief the tension on her shoulder, which she had been sleeping on. As she did, the councilor stirred again.

"I must say, dust storms are the most abominable—"

"All right already!" Raig interrupted. "I don't need any more of your complaining to—"

"_My_ complaining? You were the one who was whining about the lack of food two hours ago—"

"There is a fine line between whining and concern!"

"Uh, guys? Can you just knock it off? The weather's bad enough as is," Calynn ventured. Both men whirled on her at once. _Uh-oh, didn't count on that happening_.

Suddenly, a voice broke into her thoughts.

"We have arrived at Ald'ruhn, masters and mistress," the silt strider master said. With sighs of relief, the threesome made their way down the silt strider ramp, minor disagreements forgotten.

* * *

Calynn sat on the edge of the bunk inside the Ald'ruhn Fighters' Guild sleeping quarters, her mind battling itself. Should I talk to Hassour Zainsubani? What if he doesn't know anything? 

_It doesn't hurt to ask._

_I know, but he's kind of scary. Everything's scary. I mean, so far, it seems like all I see in this world right now is the same as in the game. But what if something changes? Then I would be totally lost and my knowledge of the game will be useless._

_Then I'll have to hurry up before that happens._

Her mind made up, Calynn stood up and walked to where Raig and Dram Bero were sitting, sipping steaming tea.

"There's this man, an Ashlander merchant, at the Ald Skar Inn. I think he might be able to help us and give us some information," she began hesitantly. Ever since the dust storm, which was very disagreeable, the two men were in terrible moods. She was not in the best of moods either, and to tell the truth, the discomfort from the grains of sand had made her realize how real this situation was. If the blowing dust was so annoying, how much worse it would be if she were to engage in an actual battle.

She shook herself out of her reverie as Raig and Dram Bero looked at her expectantly.

"His name is Hassour Zainsubani. I talked to him before, when I was on the main quest to become the Nerevarine—"

Calynn stopped. Did these men even _know_ that the character in the game was the Nerevarine? Did she inadvertently reveal something she shouldn't have? She knew there were some peoples in the game who still vehemently denied the existence of the Nerevar Incarnate, even after Dagoth Ur had been defeated.

The lack of surprise on their faces told her she need not have worried. They had known all along. After all, she realized, in the game the character had to meet Dram Bero first. Apparently, all the actions that her character had done, the real Calynn had done as well.

"So we go see this merchant, and then we head for the caves and get ourselves killed? Whooopee," Dram Bero commented sarcastically.

"What's the matter with you?" Raig nudged him.

"Nothing," the Dunmer replied sullenly.

"Whatever it is, get over it. We need you to be there for us, whatever happens," Raig stated. Dram Bero did not respond.

"Here," Calynn bit her lip. "Why don't Raig and I go see Hassour, and Dram Bero, you stay here and rest up, and watch our stuff."

"Fine," the councilor muttered before flopping onto the bed, his breath evening out as his exhausted body let sleep take over.

"Guess he was just tired," Raig said.

"Mmm. How about you, Raig? Are you tired?" As far as Calynn knew, he hadn't slept at all since their stay at the Southwall Cornerclub.

"I'm fine. I slept a little on the way here." _Ah_, Calynn thought, _that would explain matters_.

* * *

"He's supposed to be downstairs in the basement," she whispered before pushing the door of the Ald Skar Inn open.

"Do you want me to wait for you here?" Raig asked.

"No, come with me. I…" Calynn was at a loss for words. "I… It'll… It'll be better if you come along. To hear what he has to say. And…" She threw her eyes around the room, the fear gnawing at her insides. Ald'ruhn was a much more dangerous town than Balmora in the game. Now that she was actually here, the thought of getting near danger without the opportunity to save and load was frightening.

"… it's good to know you have my back," she concluded. It was better that Raig knew what she was feeling than to pretend she was perfectly fine, she decided.

He said nothing as he followed her downstairs, but she heard a slight scraping sound behind her and turned around. His hand was on the hilt of his claymore, slid an inch out of the scabbard. Calynn's eyes widened, and when they met his, he gave a reassuring smile and gestured for her to move forward. She quickly brought her eyes forward again, hoping her sudden movement had not alarmed anyone in the vicinity.

* * *

"Wake up!" Dram Bero groaned as a soft bundle hit his face.

"What?" he sputtered, looking around him blearily.

"We got you new clothes. They're traveling clothes, much better than those robes you're wearing," Raig said, a smile on his face. Calynn stood slightly behind, observing the pair with a gleam in her eyes.

The meeting must have gone well, Dram Bero thought.

"What is your plan now?" He asked as he changed out of the extravagant robes into a plain blue expensive robe, which was made of much lighter and durable material.

"Hassour told us that the Ashlanders had seen some activity on the coast east of Khuul," Calynn reported. "The Urshilaku camp is especially concerned. One of their warriors went to investigate, heading north, and never returned. Their wise woman was reluctant to tell Hassour much, but she did tell him to warn others to stay away until the situation is cleared up."

"Hassour said he had great faith Calynn would be able to take care of whatever is going on," Raig contributed. Silence reigned as the three pondered the best course of action.

"Wait a minute," Raig interjected. "If the Imperial agents in Samaca are supposed to be the good guys, then how come they attacked an Ashlander? They're on your side, aren't they, Calynn?"

"My friend," Dram Bero answered. "It's obvious you were not born to engage in politics. Both the Imperials and the Ashlanders are on Calynn's side, yes. But that does not mean they are on each other's side, as confusing as that sounds."

"Are you suggesting, then, that the agents did indeed kill the warrior?" Calynn asked.

"I'm saying it's a distinct possibility. There's also a chance that the warrior succumbed to some other means."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. A cliff racer? Those are pretty dangerous."

Raig let out a snort. "A cliff racer? This is a _trained_ Ashlander warrior. They don't die simply because of a cliff racer."

"Regardless, I think we should get some rest, and start on our journey northwards tomorrow morning," Calynn said as she tucked her legs under the cover. There was no telling what would happen tomorrow. She couldn't help the small shiver down her spine. North meant wilderness. It meant being further away from civilization, if Balmora could be called that. Even when she played the game, she always made certain her character had enough arrows, potions, and hammers to last her through many battles. Her last waking thought was how nice it would be to sleep on her bed, in her own room, surrounded by nice brick walls.

* * *

Calynn, Raig, and Dram Bero once again sighed with relief as they walked down the ramp of the silt strider port. They had left Ald'ruhn and arrived at Khuul, the ride uneventful. They headed out of town to the south, intending to be far away enough to be able to rest, and yet close enough to run back into town should danger approach.

However, rest was not to be easily found this evening. Just as the group passed the fluttering banner marking the boundaries of the town, a sharp voice cried out.

"Step forward slowly and drop your weapons," the voice was sharp and yet barely above a whisper at the same time. If it wasn't for the threat, Calynn found herself musing, it would be a beautiful voice.

"Did you hear me?" the voice hissed again. "Drop your weapons now, or you die."

The word "die" seemed to have an effect, as Calynn's stomach suddenly dropped to her feet while her heart leapt into her throat, leaving an aching emptiness in her chest. It was getting hard for her to breathe. She felt someone grab her elbow, and almost jumped before the hand caught her again and a voice whispered in her ear.

"It's all right," Raig whispered. She nodded mutely. _Good thing the Redguard is here_, she thought. _But who are these people? Oh, and just one more thing, I'm not sure I like the death threats being issued here_.

"We are travelers weary for rest. Please allow us to pass," Dram Bero attempted some tact, which did not work.

"Rest you shall receive, but it shall be permanent," the voice replied. Laughter, but not the delightful kind, filled the air.

_When will the guards notice that something's amiss_? Calynn wondered. She craned her neck around and gasped. While they had been accosted by the unseen threat, about ten people had docked a boat and were now fighting with the guards, who seemed to be holding out at the moment.

"We will not."

Calynn heard the defiance in Raig's voice before she heard his words. _Ok, way to get us killed. Now we'll have to fight them, and I don't know how to draw a bow or how to fight with a sword. I mean, I guess I do. But in real life, I haven't done any of those things. It'll probably hurt a lot if I get wounded. I might even die_. Her eyes widened at the thought.

"Then you go to your deaths," the voice declared. A figure stepped out of the shadows. It was a male Wood Elf. He wore a plain red shirt with a black vest. A strangely curved bow was in his hand, and it was pulled taut, arrow already on the string.

Calynn couldn't help it. She screamed. Both Raig and Dram Bero jumped and lost their concentration for a moment. This was the opportunity the enemy needed, as several more Bosmer stepped out of the shadows, each with a drawn bow in hand, right arm pulled back to the right ear.

She heard a clink and a snap, and looked to see that Dram Bero had launched a bolt from his steel crossbow. He must have been out of practice, for the bolt slammed into the ground several feet in front of the nearest Wood Elf.

"Oh Almalexia!" Calynn thought she heard him mutter. Behind her, Raig was loading bolt after bolt into his crossbow. Already, he had injured a Wood Elf in the thigh and another one in the arm, although neither of the two showed signs of pain as they retrained their bows on the three friends.

Calynn fumbled with her longbow, berating herself for not stringing it earlier. But how could she have known? She realized she hadn't even tried firing a bow before.

_This is _not_ good_, Calynn found herself talking to herself. _Oh my goodness oh my goodness oh my goodness I'm going to die I'm going to die_…

"Calynn, look out!" She heard Raig cry out a warning.

Startled, she looked up and saw a Wood Elf aim straight at her. It was strange. She could see him release the arrow and hear the recoil of the string as it snapped forward in the suddenly silent night. In slow motion, the arrow came towards her, but she couldn't move. The next thing she knew, she was staring at the fletching of the arrow, lodged in her left shoulder. Calynn stared at disbelief, and then blackness took over her vision.

* * *

**Sorry I took so long to update. The schoolwork has just been piling up. There are also AP tests in the next two weeks, but I will try to update more often. However, work before play, work before play.**

**My chapters are getting longer and longer. Please let me know if this trend is inconvenient.**


	8. No More

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Ethel Llorak: Thanks for the comment. I'm glad I don't actually have a real life experience of landing in Vvardenfell. Otherwise, like you said, I would be incredibly scared and fragile.**

**Ghost1800: It's good to hear that you like the story. I hope you continue to enjoy it.**

**The Knight of Laughs: No worries. Killing off the main character is not my purpose here. See? points to chapter below**

**Nereverar: Thank you for leaving reviews! I always saw Redguards as the calm, cool-under-pressure type. I don't know why. Do you think so too?**

**The Cursed Cleric: Thanks for dropping a review. Hope you enjoy the rest of the story.**

* * *

From the last chapter… 

_Startled, she looked up and saw a Wood Elf aim straight at her. It was strange. She could see him release the arrow and hear the recoil of the string as it snapped forward in the suddenly silent night. In slow motion, the arrow came towards her, but she couldn't move. The next thing she knew, she was staring at the fletching of the arrow, lodged in her left shoulder. Calynn stared at disbelief, and then blackness took over her vision. _

* * *

"Ow ow ow ow ow ow, you're hurting me." A man's voice floated through the air.

"Hold still and it won't hurt so much." It was another male voice.

"If you don't dig around in my wound so savagely, maybe I won't squirm as much."

Voices were swirling around her as Calynn slowly surfaced to consciousness again. She wanted them to go away, to leave her in silence so she could rest in peaceful darkness again. But the more she tried to block the voices out, the more she became aware of her surroundings, which unfortunately included a throbbing in her shoulder that grew more intense with each passing second.

_I've been more comfortable in my life_, she thought sarcastically. _What happened?_

"Hey Calynn, you're awake!" Dram Bero rushed over to her side despite protests from Raig, who was trying to wrap a bandage around the Dunmer's arm.

"Mmmm," Calynn mumbled groggily, her throat dry. "Can you… be quiet?"

"Uh, sure, ok," Dram Bero looked so contrite Calynn almost felt badly for him. Almost. But any sort of sympathetic feeling she had for the councilor evaporated when she realized she didn't know how she ended up here, or why her shoulder was hurting so much.

"Done!" Raig announced. "Calynn, you just rest for a while. It's nighttime now."

"Ok," she replied absent-mindedly, snuggling into the blankets, which were made of coarse material but were surprisingly warm. Despite the comfort of the blankets, she couldn't remain silent for long.

"So, what happened?" She asked the Redguard.

He swiftly told her about the fight with the Wood Elves. She drifted while his voice droned on, catching snippets of what he said. Apparently, the melee ended about twenty minutes after she was first struck. The guards had overcome the invaders from the docks and came to the friends' assistance. Raig and Dram Bero were handling themselves quite well, after Dram Bero had warmed up a little. After the skirmish, the two men had immediately picked Calynn up and brought her to a nearby villager's hut, where they were staying for the time being.

As she listened to his account, Calynn started remembering the sequence of events leading up to her getting hurt. She remembered the fear, the silence, and then the blackness. It was not an experience she wanted to go through again. Before she could think much further, heaviness came over her eyelids and she fell asleep.

For the next few days, Calynn slept for the majority of the time, waking to eat a broth of boiled crab meat. Someone offered to cast a restore health spell on her, but she protested so vehemently that whoever it was had backed off.

Now, Calynn laid in bed, wondering if she should call the person back.

_It works fine in the game, but how does it feel?_ She said to herself._ I mean, do you actually feel your muscles and skin knit back together again? That'd be kind of creepy._

She knew Restoration was a minor skill for her character, but she was predictably reluctant to perform a spell on herself. _Not to mention what could happen if I do the wrong spell._

* * *

After a week of incredibly tiresome bed rest, Calynn had recovered sufficiently to move around the house, all without the aid of any magicka. What her companions were up to, she didn't really know. Her thoughts were always occupied by minimizing the amount of pain she experienced while moving her shoulder.

"Calynn," Raig approached her one evening as she stared at the crackling logs in the fireplace on the dirt floor.

"Hmm?" Calynn watched the flames dance around the wood, weaving over and under it.

"Uh," he stopped and cleared his throat. "We, that is, Dram Bero and I, we want to know what you plan to do next." He seemed relieved now that his question was finally out in the open.

"About what?" she asked.

"The Wood Elves, the missing Ashlander, you know."

"Oh," Calynn said. To tell the truth, she hadn't thought about the recent happenings that much. She had concentrated on thinking about the books she read in which characters recovered from injuries, hoping to draw strength from their examples. As for the revolutionaries, she preferred not to think about them. Calynn wanted nothing more than to leave this desolate wasteland and return home, one way or another.

But now that Raig had confronted her, what was she to do? _Can I just up and leave?_ She wondered. Even though she had spent only a few days with her two "new" friends, she found she liked them. _I am not sure I would like their reactions when I tell them I don't want to go through with this anymore. My reasons, like I don't want to fight and I don't want to die, are probably not going to make sense to them_.

Aware that Raig and Dram Bero were still waiting for her response, she said the first thing that came to her mind.

"We go," she said shortly. _Well, that was brilliant_, she silently berated herself. _Go _where?

"Go where?" Dram Bero echoed her own thoughts.

_It's now or never. Say it. Just say it_, she told herself.

"I am going back to Balmora or Vivec," she announced. To her surprise, she sounded calmer than she would have thought possible. The two men, too, were keeping a more stoic expression than she expected. She had just told them she no longer believed in their mission, and they were just standing there, hands in their pockets, looking at the fire, much like she was.

"I understand," Raig responded at last.

"You do?"

"Not truly," he qualified his assertion. "I understand that you do not wish to remain any longer, but I do not understand why you would do so. However, it is not my place to question your decision nor to ask for reasons. With your permission, I will remain here and locate the Samaca agents."

Calynn didn't know what to say. If she had been in Raig's place, she was sure she would be railing at the cowardly Master of the guild. But Raig did not do so, and for that she was grateful.

Calynn gathered up the remainder of her supplies and stuffed them all into her satchel. She would leave on the silt strider tonight for Ald'ruhn and then catch a ride to Balmora from there. How she was going to avoid the Camonna Tong again, she still hadn't figured out, but with the amount of time it took to traverse the land, she had no doubt that a plan could be made before then.

"I wish you well," Dram Bero spoke from his seat at the table. The fire was crackling between them, and Raig was leaning against a cupboard decorated with red earthenware. The village to whom the hut belonged had been making his bed at his neighbor's hut while the travelers were in town.

"I too wish you well," Raig said gravely. "May the wind be on your back."

Calynn didn't think it was a traditional greeting used by Redguards, so she assumed that he must have learned it from his Nordic comrades.

"Thank you," she replied. "And good luck." With that, she drew the strap across her shoulder, careful to put it on her _right_ shoulder so as to not aggravate her still tender wound.

* * *

"Same low prices, just for you."

Calynn gave a start as she realized the silt strider had come to a stop. The silt strider master was now talking to his next passenger and gesturing at her to leave. As she maneuvered her way down the narrow ramp down to ground level, she inadvertently brushed the person getting into the silt strider after her. A scroll dropped out of the sleeve of his robe, but he didn't seem to notice. She turned to notify the stranger, but he had already given the direction to leave. As the giant insect bounded across the landscape, Calynn was left at the silt strider platform, the scroll unraveling tantalizingly at her feet.

* * *

I'm finished with the majority of my AP testing. However, finals are approaching.

Please leave constructive criticism, etc. Sorry this chapter is kind of short. I wanted to end it here before a plot shift, and also because I wanted to upload this thing.

I realize that Calynn has a couple of Restore Health potions in her satchel, but taking her train of thought into consideration, it is unlikely she would have used them, since she didn't want to practice magicka on herself (at least not just yet).

Does anyone know whether wood elf is supposed to be capitalized (Wood Elf) or not (wood elf)? Are the words "Dunmer" and "Bosmer" always capitalized?


	9. Scroll and Dream

**Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Ethel Llorak: **Based on the input of three reviewers, I will capitalize all race names. Also, I've corrected the last chapter, so it should say "May the wind be on your back" is a Nordic phrase, not one from Khajiits. Thanks for keeping me accurate. I did the same Fighters' Guild quest, but apparently I was at a much higher level than you were, and subsequently did not have to recover for an _entire_ week :)

**The Knight of Laughs: **It's spelled "refusal," in case you wanted to know. Thanks for the encouragement, and I hope you keep writing your story as well.

**Nereverar: **Thanks for the input. For the sake of respect and consistency, I will capitalize all races from now on. I actually didn't like the past chapter that much, so I'm glad you found it enjoyable to read.

* * *

From the last chapter… (in Ald'ruhn) 

_As she maneuvered her way down the narrow ramp down to ground level, she inadvertently brushed the person getting into the silt strider after her. A scroll dropped out of the sleeve of his robe, but he didn't seem to notice. She turned to notify the stranger, but he had already given the direction to leave. As the giant insect bounded across the landscape, Calynn was left at the silt strider platform, the scroll unraveling tantalizingly at her feet._

* * *

_Should I pick it up?_ Calynn subconsciously looked around the silt strider platform, searching for anyone who might see her should she pocket the scroll. _No one seems to be looking in this direction. Ok, pick it up_.

She bent at the knees, grasped the scroll, tucked it into her satchel, and straightened up quickly again. Just at that moment, a loud howling came from the northwest as grains of dust blew into her eyes, signaling the beginning of a sandstorm. With a startled yelp, Calynn scurried down the ramp and made towards the Fighters' Guild quarters to the right.

Suddenly, she heard the crunch of bonemold boots on rocky ground and spun around to see a Redoran guard, one hand raised against the swirling dust, the other holding a sputtering torch.

"Move along," he said to her.

All too eager to comply, Calynn couldn't help but sprint all the way to the door, pull it open, step inside, turn quickly around, and jerk the wooden door shut again.

She gave a start when a voice came from behind her.

"Greetings and salutations."

Clearing her throat, Calynn said breathlessly, "Yes, to you too."

The person who spoke was a Bosmer standing behind what could be called the reception desk. Despite having entered this building many times in her game playing, Calynn could not recall his name. Deciding that it was unnecessary to inquire after his name, she merely told him, "Sandstorm is starting up again."

Then she added, "Um, I'm going downstairs." Making her way downstairs, she felt the sweat trickling down the palm of her hands, causing the chitin gauntlets to stick to her wrists.

_No reason to be nervous_, she tried to encourage herself as she walked downstairs. _Ald'ruhn is a large town patrolled by those not-so-friendly but nevertheless skilled guards. Everybody in this building likes you. I just need to get back to Vivec, cross the bridge in the Foreign Quarter, and then… just stand there and wait? What _am _I going to do once I get there?_

"Oh, you are wounded. How sad," someone broke into her thoughts, causing her to gasp in fright. Calynn was beginning to get sick of being startled, this being about the fourth time in as many minutes since she had arrived in Ald'ruhn.

"You're Percius Mercius!" Calynn stated, thinking how stupid she sounded, as if the man didn't know his own name.

"Yes, that's me," he gave a smile. _At least he's nice_, Calynn noted to herself. Too late, she realized he had asked her a question.

"Uh, I beg your pardon. Could you say that again?"

"Did you eliminate those bandits in the cave up north?" Percius Mercius tried again.

"Bandits? What bandits?"

Percius Mercius didn't say anything, only raised his eyebrows and looked at her with a puzzled expression. After a few seconds, Calynn finally made the connection in her mind.

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh! _Those_ bandits. Yeah, they well, uh, no actually I never went to Samaca. Ok, let me take that back. I did go, but then my character died, and so the real me never went, but the fake me went…" she trailed off because his face had flashed from interest to confusion to something she couldn't even describe. It was as though he didn't know whether to laugh or to run away. Right then, Calynn hated her tendency to ramble when nervous.

"Could I just go to my room and rest for awhile?" Calynn hoped she didn't sound as awkward as she felt. The former Guildmaster raised his arm and pointed the way, still mute.

"Thanks," Calynn said, giving an audible sigh of relief as she closed the door behind her. This was originally Percius Mercius's room, she knew, but he had given her the use of it after she agreed to depose Sjoring Hard-Heart.

Calynn flopped on the bed. As she did so, a scroll tumbled out of her satchel. It was the one she had picked up on the silt strider platform. Her fingers trembling for no apparent reason, she unrolled it with no small hesitation. She skimmed the document and was surprised to see that it was written in English.

_On second thought_, she caught herself, _it's _not_ in English. It's in some weird sort of script, but I can understand it. Cool_.

That thought faded from her mind as she scanned down the page.

_Compatriots of Valenwood_, it read,

_The operation is in its final stages. Once we have the necessary piece, we can reverse history and bring the magnificence of our way of life to these lowly Dunmer and their dirty friends. They shall taste the meaning of death and slavery firsthand, as our ancestors have for generations prior on this wretched island. Neither their children, nor the elderly, shall be spared._

_Courage, and be steadfast. Success is near at hand_.

The letter was unsigned and undated, but Calynn saw some ink smeared on her finger where she had brushed it against some of the words. This note, she concluded, couldn't have been written more than an hour before.

She tossed the scroll aside in disgust, wiping her hands on the chitin greaves.

_Here in my hands_, she said to herself, _I held a document endorsing the enslavement and murder of innocent people. Clearly, the Bosmer revolutionaries want to eradicate the whole Morrowind population. Does their hatred run this deep?_

Calynn thought about the two companions she left behind at Khuul, Raig and Dram Bero. How would they fare if the revolutionaries were as close to success as the letter seemed to indicate?

She picked up the paper again. _What did they mean by the "piece"? And what operation are they talking about? Who wrote it?_

Questions whirled in her head, but they were all questions she didn't have answers to. Exhausted by the journey and the new twist (whatever that might be) in the revolutionaries' plan, Calynn crawled under the covers to mentally argue with herself.

_Should the Bosmer revolutionaries gain power, the evils would be terrible_, one part of her brain said.

But who was she to try to stop them?

_Slavery is wrong! Think back to the lectures you heard about the abolition of slavery in England and the Civil War in the United States. Mass murder, obviously, is terrible as well._

But these people aren't real. They're just made up of little pixels on the computer.

_They are as real as you are right now. If you don't help them, you're just standing by while innocents suffer_.

I don't want to. This isn't real, I wouldn't know what to do anyway, and I'm too scared.

With that thought, Calynn promptly fell asleep.

* * *

_Do not fear_, a voice floated on the air. It was a deep voice, but strangely feminine as well. There was an echo to it, as though whoever was speaking was standing at the end of a long tunnel.

_You have been chosen, and you were sent to complete your appointed task_.

Calynn suddenly saw images flit across her vision, images of Dunmer and Imperial children playing together, of Bosmer youth practicing archery with Orcs.

_Now go, through the door, to Morrowind_.

Calynn woke up, sweat-drenched, black strands of hair plastered to her forehead. The room was dark, save for a lantern on the chest at the foot of the bed. She quickly snatched it up and cast the light to the walls of the room. There was no one else in the room besides her. After lighting a few more candles to give off more light, she crept back under the covers. Sitting up, she pulled them close to her chin.

_Ok, it was just a dream. Nothing more. It was just a dream. Wait a second… _she sucked in a breath.

_Was that just _Azura_ speaking to me?_

* * *

**I don't know if this chapter made sense or not. It all made sense in my head while I was writing it, but obviously it's different if you're not the author but the reader.**


	10. Khuul Again

**I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Ethelle Llorak: **Thanks for the review.

**The Knight of Laughs: **I'm glad that you enjoyed the last chapter so much.

**Nereverar: **Thanks. I will be sure to reread my chapters from now on, as you advised :)

* * *

From the last chapter… (in Ald'ruhn)

_Now go, through the door, to Morrowind_.

Calynn woke up, sweat-drenched, black strands of hair plastered to her forehead. The room was dark, save for a lantern on the chest at the foot of the bed. She quickly snatched it up and cast the light to the walls of the room. There was no one else in the room besides her. After lighting a few more candles to give off more light, she crept back under the covers. Sitting up, she pulled them close to her chin.

_Ok, it was just a dream. Nothing more. It was just a dream. Wait a second… _she sucked in a breath.

_Was that just _Azura_ speaking to me?_

* * *

The morning found Calynn rummaging around Percius Mercius's room, crates scattered at strange angles and the lids of the chests thrown open. She had one glass boot on and was struggling to tug the other one on when the door swung open.

"Oh, I beg your pardon," Percius Mercius apologized, closing the door quickly again.

"No probl—" Calynn started to say, but by this time, the door was shut already. _Ok, fine. _She turned back to the task at hand. _Let's see here. I can exchange my useless chitin armor for the glass cuirass and greaves here. I hope that'll prevent my shoulder from sprouting another shaft_. She unconsciously shivered, recalling the jolt of pain that shot through her when she was hit by an arrow just outside of Khuul.

Long ago, Percius Mercius had given Calynn, or rather, her character, permission to use his room and his armor. Calynn never really thought about it, but now it seemed curious to her that the armor fit everybody, no matter his or her size. She was surely a foot shorter than the former guildmaster, yet the glass armor fit her perfectly. _I guess this is one of the conveniences of the game, like my ever-expanding satchel_.

Calynn nearly snorted when she realized her choice of words. Did she just call something in the game a "convenience"? The longer she stayed in Morrowind, the more she realized how… _different_ everything was. For example, she couldn't recall the last time she took a shower. In fact, there didn't seem to be any washrooms, private or public, anywhere in the province at all!

A polite but insistent knock on the door brought Calynn back from her thoughts.

"Calynn? May I retrieve something from my room?" The voice of Percius Mercius came through the door.

"Yeah, sure. Just a moment," Calynn called out, crossing the room from where she had been sitting on the bed to open the door, admitting the Imperial.

"I just needed some clothing from the closet and my eating utensils from the table," he said hurriedly, gathering the items. The man glanced around the room, probably dismayed that his normally neat room had now been turned into a jumble of crates and lids.

"Are you planning to go somewhere?" he asked, gesturing at the various things strewn on the floor and her partially-armored state. She had put on the greaves but not the cuirass yet.

"Yeah, I think I might be going back to them," Calynn replied. _There now, I said it, and there's no turning back. Not that I want to turn back… right?_ She was hesitant to answer her own question.

"Back? Back where?" He looked confused, as puzzled as he had been the day before when she started babbling about her character and bandits up north.

"To wherever Raig and Dram Bero are," she said loudly, as much to convince herself as to clarify it for the Imperial. "I read a note dropped by one of the revolutionaries here in Ald'ruhn, and it says the Bosmer outlaws want to murder innocent children and enslave everyone. I cannot, I will not, let that happen."

Calynn stopped, fairly impressed with herself. _I sounded like a real Fighters' Guild master, poised and confident. Too bad I don't actually feel that way_.

She noticed Percius Mercius was silent, still staring at her. She had thought he was perceptive and intelligent during the game, but maybe she was wrong in that initial judgment. He was nowhere near as sharp and quick as Raig. Perhaps that was why he lost his position as guild master before the Nerevarine came. Just when she was about to give him up as a lost cause, he put his hand on his chin and started scratching at the slight stubble there.

"Wait a minute," he said. "How do you know that scroll is real?"

"What do you mean?" Calynn wondered what he was getting at.

"Well, I've been hearing reports of Bosmer revolutionaries and of you heading up north and yesterday, I saw you bump into a man on the silt strider platform, and then I saw you hesitating to, uh, _take_ the scroll. Then, this morning, you start talking about massive bloodshed and slavery," he concluded. "Now, how do you know the scroll under the bed over there is actually credible and about this revolutionary movement?"

"Because it says 'compatriots of Valenwood'?" she ventured. Maybe he deserved more credit than she was giving him.

"That must mean it's true," he said dryly. "Listen, be careful. I have a feeling there's more to this than you know."

"Explain yourself."

"What if you were _meant_ to receive that scroll?"

"What?!" Calynn was incredulous. _But why not?_ She asked herself. Was someone trying to lure her back to Khuul? Was she the "necessary piece" the letter talked about? Was all of the letter true, or part of it, or none of it?

"All I'm saying is, take cautions when traveling, and trust only those you know," he advised.

_Ah great, trust only those I know_, she thought. _I don't know anyone here. I'm from _Earth _for crying out loud!_

Of course, she didn't voice any of her concerns aloud. She only commended the Imperial for his critical thinking and returned to packing. Thanks to his generosity, she was now clad in glass armor instead of chitin, a welcome change. Not only was glass armor much stronger, it was a lot lighter as well, not to mention prettier, as it matched with her black hair. Calynn caught herself thinking of her appearances and couldn't help but be amused. She was thinking about whether her clothes matched her hair when there were presumably dangerous and deadly plots brewing outside.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Calynn slowly climbed the ramp to the silt strider platform, where she was greeted.

"Same low price," the silt strider master rasped out. _Standing out here during dust storms must really affect your voice_, she said to herself. She took out a few septims and paid the passage to Khuul.

* * *

As Calynn climbed out of the great shell of the silt strider at Khuul, she cast a look around the small village, looking for signs of her friends. They were apparently indoors, since she couldn't catch a glimpse of even Dram Bero's ostentatious robes.

"'Scuse me, sir, can you tell me where…" she started to ask, then trailed off because she couldn't recall the name of the villager whose hut she had been staying at.

"Yes?" the guard she had approached prompted.

"Uh, where councilor Dram Bero is at?" She hoped the guard would recognize someone with as much power and influence as Dram Bero.

"Haven't seen him since yesterday. Him and the Redguard, they went off to talk to the locals," the guard waved towards the east. "Visiting the Ashlanders, the people say. I wouldn't follow them if I were you. There're bandits and renegades all over the place. Even if you reach that Urshilaku camp, don't expect a welcome there. They don't like outlanders."

"I'll be careful," she thanked him and set off towards the east. A dust storm was picking up, and when combined with the setting sun, visibility was low. _That's two people in one day who've warned me to be careful_, she mused. _I wonder if that's a sign. Nah, signs are just for superstitious people_.

"But Azura," she suddenly stopped and exclaimed aloud. "Azura is also supposed to be fake too, but she just spoke to me last night."

Calynn resumed her walk, scanning the horizon for cliff racers and the ground for rats. _I'm not sure of anything anymore. If Azura is real, then I might as well start believing in anything and everything, _including _signs_.

She became nervous the farther she went from Khuul. Small village though it was, there were still guards and people there. Out here in the wilderness, she was all alone. If chased by a wild kagouti, she wasn't certain she could make it back to town in time for the guards to help her. Calynn tried to shake these dismal thoughts from her head, but she couldn't.

_Some of that music they play in the game would be nice,_ she thought. _At least I would get some warning before danger approached_.

At this moment, Calynn gasped and skidded to a halt. Her hands grappled for the silver claymore at her side while she fumed at herself for not having her weapon out at all times. It was a mistake she would never make in the game, but she had done it this time, when it truly mattered. A man had suddenly materialized from a column of rock in front of her.

"Outlander," he stated. "You will be coming with me. That sword will serve you no purpose."

Clearing her throat and attempting to wipe her balmy hands on her greaves (which didn't work very well, considering they were made of glass), Calynn found enough courage to whisper, "Who are you?"

"I am Thanelen Velas."

* * *

**So who is Thanelen Velas:)**

**Sorry I haven't updated in so long. The tangles in the plot have been worked out, finally. I hope to be updating more frequently from now on. Thank you, readers, for being so patient.**


	11. The Solo Fighter

**I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**Nereverar: **I will make every attempt to finish this story, preferably before the summer is over and I have to go off to college! Thanks for reading and reviewing my story.

**Ethelle Llorak:** I am not creative enough to have come up with as Morrowind-sounding a name as Thanelen Velas, so the only logical explanation would be… read on :)

* * *

From the last chapter… (in Khuul)

A man had suddenly materialized from a column of rock in front of her.

"Outlander," he stated. "You will be coming with me. That sword will serve you no purpose."

Clearing her throat and attempting to wipe her balmy hands on her greaves (which didn't work very well, considering they were made of glass), Calynn found enough courage to whisper, "Who are you?"

"I am Thanelen Velas."

* * *

"Thanel… what?" Calynn couldn't help but ask. Even while she was safe at home playing the game, the names in Morrowind were always a source of trouble; they were difficult to pronounce and even more difficult to remember. Now, she didn't even have the benefit of seeing the person's name written on the screen.

"Thanelen Velas, Nerevarine," he spat, using the title of the Nerevar reborn as though it meant "n'wah" or "swit" or something similar.

Not even considering how he knew she was supposed to be the Nerevarine, Calynn tried to backpedal inconspicuously, hoping to put enough distance between them that she could eventually turn and bolt back to town, if Khuul could be called a town.

"I wouldn't do that if he were you," Thanel-something warned, his red eyes glancing at something behind her. This action prompted Calynn to cast a glance over her shoulder to whatever he was looking at, revealing that a female Dunmer had crept up, holding a chitin dagger.

"Just in time, Vadusa," Thanel-something muttered.

"I got here, didn't I?" Vadusa retorted. "Marasa and Madrale got into a verbal fighting match, and Sovor had to separate them. They should be coming along soon."

While the conversation was going on, Calynn stood rooted to the spot, heart pounding and blood rushing through her head at impossible speeds. But when the female Dunmer finished speaking, Calynn took the moment to draw her claymore from its sheath. A loud _shing_ tore through the air, audible even through the noisy dust storm.

_I can't believe I just drew my sword_, she thought. _That's got to be the dumbest thing I've done so far, and that's saying a lot_.

"That's got to be the dumbest thing you've done so far, and that's saying a lot," a low voice broke into her thoughts. She looked up at Thanelen (_yes, _that _was_ _his name_), but he had not spoken. It was another male Dunmer who appeared next to him, who looked rather familiar.

_What were the names Vadusa mentioned again? Ma-something or other, and Sovor. Why does it sound so familiar? Sovor, Sovor, Sovor_, Calynn repeated in her mind. _Sovor Trandel! There's a name that I would definitely remember after I pickpocketed him for the Nerano Manor key_.

Calynn experienced a brief moment of pride and satisfaction at being able to recall Sovor Trandel's name before she completely processed the information.

_Uh-oh._

Her face must have expressed her horror, because Sovor Trandel smiled. It was a smile that did not reach his crimson eyes at all, but only made his face crueler.

"I see you remember me," he said, his voice becoming more malicious with every word he spoke. "Very good. I remember you too. The Bosmer who talked to me right before my master's key disappeared from my pocket."

Calynn took a deep breath to steady herself, then brought the claymore up to defend herself. It seemed to have suddenly took on new weight, feeling heavy in her hands.

_A shield might be more useful_, she said to herself. _I have three people against me, plus two more coming… aaah!_

She spied a flurry of movement out of the corner of her eye and moved instinctively to the left while directing her sword to the right. The next thing she knew, the Dunmer woman who was behind her had sprawled on the ground where Calynn had just been standing. Vadusa laid nursing a bleeding arm.

_Whoa, that was a close call. Wait… how did I do that? Aaaaaah!_

This time, Thanelen had gone on the offensive, pulling a warhammer from out of nowhere. Calynn stepped backwards, making sure all three Dunmer were now in front of her. Thanelen rushed towards her, the blunt weapon raised over his head in a manner certain to crush her skull if the blow fell. Calynn dodged to the right this time, stepping over Vadusa and swinging out her long blade. The silver claymore sliced through the Dunmer male's netch leather armor as though it were cotton. Blood soaked the front of the elf's common shirt as he stumbled, landing on Vadusa, effectually preventing her from getting up.

_Oh my goodness, I might've just killed him!_ Calynn's mouth dropped open in dread and terror. The weapon dropped from her hands and made a _thud_ as it impacted with the dust-coated earth.

"What's the matter?" Sovor Trandel called from a distance, far from the two bodies on the ground, one alive and the other barely. "You too scared to fight, oh great Nerevarine?"

Something whipped by her, and when Calynn turned to look, she saw it was a chitin arrow. Another one landed on the other side of her.

_He's shooting at me_, she realized. _Across this dust storm. Finally some good comes out of this horrible weather; at least the wind will blow his arrows off course_.

Calynn also realized she was foolishly standing there, a sitting duck for Sovor Trandel's marksmanship. She turned and started running back to Khuul, trying to make it before he shot her in the back. However, luck was apparently not with her as she perceived two people taking shape in front of her, holding some sort of weapons in their hands. To her horror, she had left her claymore on the ground where she had dropped it.

_Now would be a good time for a miracle to happen_, she thought desperately, skidding to a halt. Spinning around, she noticed Sovor Trandel was furiously running her way.

_Ok, my hand-to-hand skills are terrible, which is unfortunate, because right now I don't have any weapons left_. Calynn was rather surprised at how calm her thoughts were, considering that she was trapped between two groups of people determined to either kill or capture her. It was a big change from the previous skirmish near Khuul.

_Hey, hold on!_ A ray of hope dawned on her. She reached behind her and pulled the bonemold longbow from her back, along with an iron arrow.

_I totally forgot about these because I couldn't see them_. Luckily, the bow was already strung, although she was certain she hadn't been the one to do it. Leaving herself no time to wonder about how the bow strung itself, she fitted the arrow to the string and aimed the point of the arrowhead at the man heading towards her. Then, she stopped.

_Uh, how do I do this? Do I just point-and-shoot? Wait, that's a technique for taking snapshots with a camera!_ Scared and frustrated, she let go of the arrow. It flopped to the ground in front of her, almost as a mockery of her.

It seemed to say, "Who do you think you are? That slash was just a lucky hit. It takes more than watching movies and playing computer games to make you competent at surviving here."

By this time, Sovor Trandel had planted his feet and was once again taking aim at her. He was apparently terrible at archery, because none of his arrows made it to her. Calynn chanced a glance at the two figures and was relieved to see they hadn't moved at all. They were most likely posted there in case she tried to make it to town.

Drawing in a deep breath (and wishing she hadn't because she inhaled a hefty amount of swirling dust) at the same time she drew back the arrow, Calynn took aim again. She checked that her left arm was sticking out straight, her right hand at her right ear, because that was what all the fictional characters did. For good measure, she also peered along the length of the shaft, and it appeared to point straight at the Dunmer man.

Actually closing her eyes, she let go. But she quickly opened her eyes again when she heard a scream. She had hit her target. Thankfully, one of her character's major skills is marksmanship.

"I have the upper hand," the elf was now howling. "Surrender now!"

Calynn couldn't see where she had struck him, but he seemed to be holding his left side. She took aim again, nothing running through her mind but the thought that it was essential the next shot fly true as well. She repeated the process, and again a scream. Sovor Trandel fell to the ground and moved no more.

Once again, Calynn was hit with the implication that she had just killed someone. This time, she thought she would vomit, but she made herself stand still and maintain a grip on her bow. There were still two characters, two people, between her and safety, and they were _definitely_ not made of pixels.

* * *

**I decided to update more quickly, you could say as a special treat for the July 4****th**** holiday. This chapter is a little short, but more is coming soon. Hope you liked it!**

**And do you know who Thanelen Velas is by now? ;) There are a few more clues in this chapter.**


	12. Luck Runs Out

I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.

**Ethelle Llorak: The quest directly involving Thanelen Velas is Larrius Varro's "bad people" quest in Balmora/Fort Moonmoth. The quest involving Sovor Trandel is from Balmora's Mages' Guild.**

**Nereverar: Sovor Trandel is indeed part of the Camonna Tong. Thanks for the review and encouragement!**

* * *

From the last chapter… (somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

"I have the upper hand," the elf was now howling. "Surrender now!"

Calynn couldn't see where she had struck him, but he seemed to be holding his left side. She took aim again, nothing running through her mind but the thought that it was essential the next shot fly true as well. She repeated the process, and again a scream. Sovor Trandel fell to the ground and moved no more.

Once again, Calynn was hit with the implication that she had just killed someone. This time, she thought she would vomit, but she made herself stand still and maintain a grip on her bow. There were still two characters, two people, between her and safety, and they were _definitely_ not made of pixels.

* * *

Calynn peered at the two figures who were blocking her path back to Khuul. They had not moved, and had not given any indication that they had seen her. Against all hope, she thought maybe they hadn't seen her. Yet. 

_But wait a minute, if they can't see me, how can I see them?_ She began checking herself for any magical items she was carrying but forgot about, much like she forgot about her longbow moments ago. So, when a ring on her finger caught on one of the clasps of her glass cuirass, she wasn't that surprised.

On closer examination, the ring sparkled and glinted in the moonlight, or whatever was left of the moonlight that managed to shine through the dust storm. It looked much like all the other rings in the game.

_How do I figure out which ring this is? For all I know, it could be "Drain Health on Self" or something_, Calynn mused, glancing out of the corner of her eye at the two people, who stood silhouetted on a mound of earth rising above the ground.

_I suppose it wouldn't hurt to take it off and see the difference_, she thought. Steeling herself against everything and anything, she pulled the ring off the ring finger of her left hand. Suddenly, the world seemed much darker, dark enough that she could no longer make out the figures in the distance. She also felt more tired than before.

_Ok… I have my suspicions as to what this ring is. I'll put it on again and see if it proves my hypothesis. I really hope it's not like equipping Keening and Sunder without Wraithguard…_

Brushing aside that thought, Calynn quickly slipped the ring back on. The horizons seemed illuminated by a strange green light, and she could see the two people clearly again. The dull ache in her muscles that signaled fatigue was gone as well.

_Definitely Ring of Azura, which would explain why I could see them while they couldn't see me_.

Armed with the newly discovered ring and knowledge, Calynn slowly crept towards the two figures, hardly aware that she was doing so. Her mind was strangely blank, no longer filled with thoughts of death and despair as before. She dropped into a crouch behind a clump of waist-high grass, grasped an iron arrow from her quiver, and notched it.

_But they're just standing there_, Calynn said to herself, referring to the Dunmer women she could make out on the little hill. _How do I know they're, uh… what are their names again? Marasa and Madrale, I think. Maybe I should give them a little warning before I shoot them. It just doesn't seem right to shoot them out of nowhere_.

Accordingly, Calynn stood and slowly made her way to the middle of the path.

"Er," she cleared her throat. "Hi, are you friendly or…"

"DIE!!!" The two women cried and started to converge on her.

_Ok, I guess they're not friendly_, she thought as she backpedaled as fast as she could and ended up on her back after tripping on a trama root. _I think I should've picked up my claymore before I got myself into this._

Adrenaline coursing through her blood vessels, Calynn scrambled up again and looked around for the Dunmer. They were almost upon her. She quickly drew back the bowstring and released the arrow, which was miraculously still in her hand after the ungraceful tumble she took. Unfortunately, due to her lack of aim, it flew by the two harmlessly.

_Maybe I can whack them with the bow?_ She thought desperately as the two Dunmer started raising the weapons in their hands, which turned out to be a chitin shortsword and a chitin club.

A sharp _clunk_ brought her to the sharp awareness that her life was truly in danger. Her armor blocked most of the slashes from the sword and the blows from the club, but for how long, she didn't know. So, she did the best she could at fending them off with the bonemold longbow, but when that proved not enough, she remembered the lesson her dad taught her should she ever be in danger. She screamed as loud as she could.

"Help!"

"Surrender now, and I might let you live," one of the Dunmer said.

"I really don't want to do that," Calynn managed between two jabs of her bow. _Well, here's something you _can't _do in the game… using the bow as a staff_. The thought flitted through her consciousness.

"Help!" she tried again, hoping someone would come. All of a sudden, she felt a heavy blow fall on her left elbow, followed a second later by tingling and numbness in her hand. She turned towards that direction and saw a woman smiling triumphantly, club waving menacingly.

"You're no match for me," the Dunmer declared. Calynn didn't even bother to answer her, instead focusing on delivering a firm whack to the other Dunmer. She heard a crack, but it was not from a broken bone on the part of her enemy. Her bow had cracked in half and was now in two pieces.

_Uh-oh, not good_. In a last-ditch effort, she threw the two pieces at the elves, hitting one on the cheek and missing the other completely. Calynn sighed and held her hands up, the universal gesture of surrender.

_What're they going to do to me?_ Her lungs seemed to have stopped functioning, while her heart was apparently trying to pound its way out of her chest. She was acutely aware of blood coursing through her temples, and she imagined she saw blood flowing through the capillaries in her eyes as well, clouding her vision.

"I have you," one Dunmer crowed. "You'll wish you never murdered him."

_Murdered _who_? The three people who tried to attack me a few minutes ago?_ Calynn tried to puzzle out as Marasa (or Madrale, she couldn't really tell) tied her wrists behind her with a length of rope.

"He was a good leader," the Dunmer continued on.

"Look," Calynn tried to get a word in, hoping this was all a big misunderstanding. "I'm really sorry about what happened to your friends back there, but I was only defending myself—"

"Stop babbling, or I'll gag you too."

Calynn fell quiet. She couldn't imagine this happening, truly happening. To be in the hands of the enemy is not a thing to be taken lightly.

"Do you think I care what happened to that lot?" the woman commenced again. "I only have, or _had_, thanks to you, loyalty towards one. And that was our leader."

Calynn was about to ask who the leader was, and then thought better of it as the Dunmer glared.

"C'mon Marasa, let's get her back to our hideout," the other one, Madrale, said.

* * *

"Don't move from there," Marasa said, shoving Calynn towards the back of the cave where the band was staying. It was small and the entrance could still be easily seen, even in the dank and dark interior. Calynn wasn't planning to move anyway. The rope chafed against her skin and her entire left arm was numb and tingly. 

_Please don't let me die please don't let me die please don't let me die_ was all that ran through her head.

"Prepare to die."

_Great_, Calynn thought sarcastically. _I should stop thinking such thoughts. Every time I think something bad, something bad _does _happen._

"Wait a minute!" Calynn found herself saying. She figured if she was going to die, she might as well ask them a question first. But now that she had finally spoken, she felt sweat dripping down her back, her legs turning to jelly. She forced out the words, "Why are you doing this?"

"Why? You ask why, outlander?" Marasa advanced angrily toward her. "Because you killed our beloved leader. Because you killed Orvas Dren!"

_I did? Oh, right… the main quest. I never thought the quests I did would come back to haunt me like now!_

"You are silent because you know what great crime you have committed," Madrale said. The gleam in her eyes could not pass Calynn's notice.

"I'm sorry?" Calynn offered. _That was a stupid thing for me to say_, she thought.

"But still, what does killing me do for you? It's not going to bring him back!" she pleaded. _I wonder what will happen when I die. Do I go back to Earth? Will it hurt? Like, a _lot _more than that arrow?_

"It is revenge, and though not enough, we will be satisfied, the revolutionaries will be satisfied," Marasa said. "It's a win-win situation."

_I would beg to differ. Wha--, what did she say about the revolutionaries?_

"The revolutionaries, they… they…" Calynn licked her chapped lips. "They want me dead?"

"We give them money, they give us revenge," Marasa summed up.

_Ok… so the Camonna Tong supplies the Bosmer revolutionaries with money, and the Camonna Tong get to kill me_.

"We give them your death," Madrale added, "and they have their cause."

"Their cause?" Calynn echoed.

"Don't act stupid, Incarnate," Marasa snarled. "Just because the Temple says you are Nerevar reborn doesn't mean you're Dunmer or that we like you. Go look in a mirror. You're outlander through and through. And that's how everyone is going to see you once you're dead. A Bosmer murdered by nativist Dunmer. YOU" she said, gesturing at Calynn, "will be the rallying cry in Valenwood."

Calynn couldn't believe her ears. The twisted plots, the strange alliances, it all seemed to make sense and not make sense at the same time. The Bosmer revolutionaries wanted her dead because she would be like a sort of martyr to their people?

"What we just told you is secret, but that is all right," Madrale smirked. "Because you are going to die."

With that, she drew her arm back, the blade glinting in the flickering light of the cavern. Calynn tried to move, to get out of the way in any manner, but found her muscles frozen.

Suddenly, the worn cavern door burst open, followed by a booming, commanding voice.

"HOLD!"

* * *

**Ok, I'm pretty sure Morrowind characters do not use the term "win-win situation," but please do bear with me.**

**When I was typing this, the situation just kept dragging on and on. I couldn't figure out how to get an explanation in. What do you think of my attempt?**


	13. To the Rescue

I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.

**TheFirstHokage: Thanks for the offer of help. I find that as well as my own playing, are good sources of information. Welcome to the world of Morrowind fanfic!**

**Nereverar: Since there is not much I can do about making the chapters **_**seem**_** longer, I guess you will have to make do with whatever I write :) However, it's great to hear that you like my story so much.**

**Ethelle Llorak: I'm glad the explanation and the word choices made sense to you.**

* * *

From the last chapter… (in a cavern somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

The Bosmer revolutionaries wanted her dead because she would be like a sort of martyr to their people?

"What we just told you is secret, but that is all right," Madrale smirked. "Because you are going to die."

With that, she drew her arm back, the blade glinting in the flickering light of the cavern. Calynn tried to move, to get out of the way in any manner, but found her muscles frozen.

Suddenly, the worn cavern door burst open, followed by a booming, commanding voice.

"HOLD!"

* * *

Despite the low and no-nonsense tone in which it was delivered, the single word "hold" was the most beautiful, most melodic sound that ever came to Calynn's ears. The muscles of her neck suddenly came back into her control, and she swiveled her head to look at the speaker. 

"You will slowly back away," the voice continued imperiously. "Don't try anything foolish."

Madrale immediately stepped back towards the cavern wall, but Marasa, the more hot-tempered of the two, seemed reluctant to let this opportunity slip away. She remained next to Calynn, short blade poised to kill.

"Do not make me repeat myself," the voice came sonorously, resounding off the sides and low ceiling of the cave. The person to whom the voice belonged stepped into the light, crossbow raised and leveled at Marasa.

"You are a traitor to your people, councilor," spat the Dunmer woman next to Calynn. Calynn had been trying to inch her way from Marasa, but Marasa spotted her and swiftly swept the short blade under her chin before Calynn could register what was coming.

_Great. Just great_. Calynn tried to take shallow breaths, afraid that if she inhaled too deeply, the skin of her neck would graze the sharp edge of the shortsword. The fingers of her bound hands were tingling. At least, the fingers of the right hand were. The entire left arm was becoming number than Calynn ever thought possible.

The second Marasa had placed her weapon on Calynn, Dram Bero, for it was indeed he, had released the bolt in his crossbow. But somehow, due to a faulty mechanism, the bolt was not ejected from the bow. He felt despair begin to fill his heart, but then a _zip_ came out of nowhere and the end of a bolt was protruding from Marasa's forehead. Another bolt flew from the direction of the entrance, embedding itself in the Dunmer woman's thigh.

"Aah!" she shrieked in agony, collapsing next to Calynn, but not before she made a slice with her blade.

A strange stinging sensation came from her neck as Calynn watched everything happening with widened eyes. Warm liquid trickled onto her collarbone and inside her shirt. It was sticky, and the air around her smelled tangy and metallic.

_I've just been cut. On the neck. That ought to hurt. How come it doesn't hurt?_

As if in answer, a wave of pain pulsed from her wound. Calynn would have cried out, but it hurt too much to make any sound with her throat. She was originally in a sitting position, and now she curled up, knees to her chin, attempting but failing miserably at slowing the bleeding. Distantly, she heard people talking around her.

"… you all right? … Calynn…" Someone was trying to uncurl her, pressing a cloth to her neck.

"… what should I…"

"… don't… please…" A woman's voice pleaded.

"… quiet for a moment… are you…"

"… is she…" The woman's voice again.

"Yeah, she's dead… pretty gruesome… what about…"

"… here, use this…" The hand holding the cloth to her neck was still there, but the pressure lessened a little. Calynn felt the ropes tying her hands together were sliced through, but she couldn't move her arms anymore. They felt stiff and cramped. Someone took her left arm.

"Ow!" This time, she did cry out as her previously banged elbow was moved. Whoever was holding her arm immediately let go.

"Calynn?" The pressure on the cloth increased again. "Can you hear me?"

"How's she doing?"

"Is… tied up…?" Calynn thought this voice belonged to Raig, but she wasn't sure. She didn't even see him, unless he was the one firing the bolts successfully.

"Yeah, securely. Calynn?" This sounded like Dram Bero.

"Ughhhh," Calynn managed a moan. A dark face leaning over her came into focus. Redguard. Raig.

"Hold on there, you'll be fine," he soothed.

_Raig always knows what to do_, Calynn's thoughts wandered.

"Make yourself useful, Dram Bero," Raig said to someone on Calynn's other side. "See if you have any corkbulb root or marshmerrow."

"Do I look like I carry dead plants around?" The councilor retorted, but he nevertheless dutifully went through his pockets. "Nope. Wait, here's some resin. Is it any use?"

"What use do I have for some yellow gob?"

"Uh, excuse me," a female voice broke through. "I can help you."

"What do you know?" Dram Bero's voice moved off. Calynn's neck was really starting to hurt, and she was getting a dreadful headache and a parching thirst. She was surprisingly still conscious, considering how quickly she blacked out after the arrow wound.

_How long have I been lying here? Am I bleeding to death?_

"Don't worry Calynn, we've got everything taken care of," Raig's voice floated through her consciousness. "Just a minor wound."

_When people tell you that, aren't they usually lying?_

"She says resin can work, but we need another ingredient, like saltrice or wickwheat," Dram Bero reappeared on Calynn's field of vision. She was now lying on her back, head cushioned on a sack of some sort. How she got into this position, she had no idea. When she began noticing her surroundings again, the two men were arguing over her prone body. She thought they should be doing more to save her than argue, but if they were doing so, maybe it meant she wasn't seriously wounded after all. Anyway, Raig had the presence of mind to keep pressure on the wound while gesturing with his other hand.

"How do we know we can trust her?"

"What choice do we have?"

"Maybe she's trying to murder her!"

"Or not!"

"Guys…" Calynn croaked. Both men stopped and looked downward at her. "What's… the problem?"

"Madrale says she knows other ingredients that can be used for Restore Health potions, but I haven't heard of them," Raig explained.

"In my opinion, these alchemical, uh, substances would, in any event, be… sanguineous…" Dram Bero said.

"What he means to say, Calynn, is that he doesn't know anything about alchemy but he's trying to sound like he does. I don't think we should trust Madrale; she could be trying to poison you," Raig concluded.

"What ingredients?" Calynn asked. Due to her character's propensity (meaning tendency or inclination) to get injured, she had memorized the list of ingredients for Restored Health potions and Restore Magicka potions.

"Saltrice or wickwheat," Dram Bero offered before Raig could say a word. The Dunmer smiled smugly at the Redguard.

_I really need them to concentrate on the task at hand, which is keeping me from dying!_ Even though Calynn was exasperated, she couldn't help but smile at the two companions' bantering.

"They work," she said.

"I know. I memorized a list," she said to the men's questioning looks. _Maybe memorizing "useless" stuff like that, as my brother told me, would come in useful after all._

"Good, you've stopped bleeding," Raig said, removing the bloodstained cloth. "Don't move, though, or you could reopen the wound."

"We don't have saltrice or wickwheat, though," Dram Bero pointed out.

"There's usually…" Calynn gasped out. "… some in a crate or sack in a… cave like this." Her neck still hurt, and the amount of blood on the cloth scared her. She was pretty sure by now that she was not in any immediate danger of bleeding to death, but how hurt she was, she didn't know. Apparently, it was bad enough that they needed a Restore Health potion to heal her.

_But I've never had such a potion_, she realized. _I'm not certain if I want to drink some nasty concoction that is supposed to heal me_.

"That's it," a female voice called out. "That's saltrice."

"Good," Raig said, whipping out mortar and pestle, calcinator, alembic, and retort out of nowhere. He quickly set to grounding the two ingredients, then simmer them. Moments later, a cup appeared at Calynn's lips.

"Here. Drink," Raig said.

She looked at him, the fear apparent in her eyes. At first, she thought the fear she saw in his eyes was only a reflection of her own fear. But then it dawned on her that he was afraid, even though he was trying to hide it.

_What's he afraid of?_

Calynn shook her head no, wincing as the movement pulled on her newly closed wound.

"You must." The cup was at her lips again.

"What's going on? Why won't she drink it?" Madrale called from the other side of the cavern.

"Silence, you!" Dram Bero growled. "Calynn, you have to drink it. It'll be so much better if you do."

"No," she whispered. Shooting arrows and swinging swords was all very well, but magic was something she could not accept. Spells and potions did not exist in her world, and she was understandably reluctant to use them in this world.

"I will be perfectly honest with you. You've lost too much blood. Unless you drink this, you will die, Guildmaster," Raig said. He had never called her that before. All of a sudden, it seemed he had become more detached, as though he was already distancing himself from her, preparing for her death.

"Just drink the stupid potion!" Dram Bero suddenly exploded. "Stop worrying. If you're worrying about whether the potion will kill you, don't! Because either way, you're going to die. So just try it!" Apparently, the councilor thought his outburst was very persuasive, but it didn't help at all. It might have worked with other Hlaalu councilors during sessions, but not here on the floor of a cavern, far north in the wilderness of Morrowind.

"Please," Raig leaned over her once more. "Please, drink it." His voice broke and he buried his head in his hands.

_Aww, how could I say no to that?_

_But I'm afraid of what it'll do._

_Drink it!_

_No, don't!_

Calynn took a deep breath, or as deep as her present pain would allow her.

"Raig, give me the potion." He lifted his face to look disbelievingly at her, then quickly did as she bid, probably afraid that she would change her mind soon. Calynn thought she saw tears on his face, but he turned away quickly and when he turned back, any trace of tears was gone.

_Nah, I just imagined it_.

The liquid was poured into her mouth. Closing her eyes, Calynn swallowed.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone!**

**I now have about 2 weeks before departure for college. In the meantime, it is my hope that I will finish this story before then. So, look for more frequent updates (Alternatively, there might be no more updates, but let's hope it doesn't come to that).**

**And something random just came to mind. If you joined House Hlaalu, you might have had the "honor" of meeting Crassius Curio. Unlike Dram Bero, he's not Dunmer, if I recall correctly. How'd an Imperial make it up the ranks so high in a Great House?**

**Hmm… does that call for **_**another**_** story? wink But then, I sort of found him repulsive, and I don't like repulsive characters for my protagonist(s). Ok, this is the end of my random rambling.  
**


	14. Lull

I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.

**TheFirstHokage: Thanks for reading my story. I probably won't do a story from Crassius Curio's POV, but I might try out other alternatives for the story.**

**Nereverar: Ok the story you mentioned… "pretty psycho" is a good way to describe it. I promise I'll continue the story and finish it, if only for faithful readers and reviewers like you :) Can you tell me which parts in Chapter 13 (previous chap) were confusing so I could go back and fix them?**

**The Knight of Laughs- Oh, oops! I totally didn't realize my story would spoil the game for people. I kind of assumed they would've already beaten the main quest. Do you think I should put a warning in the story summary? And I think I made fun of Dram Bero enough in previous chapters that he deserves to be the hero for once.**

**Ethelle Llorak: Thank you for your consistent reading and reviews!**

* * *

From the last chapter… (still in a cavern somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

"Raig, give me the potion." He lifted his face to look disbelievingly at her, then quickly did as she bid, probably afraid that she would change her mind soon. Calynn thought she saw tears on his face, but he turned away quickly and when he turned back, any trace of tears was gone.

_Nah, I just imagined it_.

The liquid was poured into her mouth. Closing her eyes, Calynn swallowed.

* * *

Despite knowing what ingredients went into the Restore Health potion, it didn't taste as terrible as Calynn imagined. It was a rather thick soupy mixture, like cornstarch mixed into water, with a hint of honey-like flavor and some kind of herb. She didn't feel any abrupt change come over her, but her heart, which unbeknownst to her had been palpitating wildly, slowed down and her headache subsided gradually.

_It's not so bad after all_, she mused.

Suddenly, her neck felt like it was bathed in warm water and padded dry by the softest towel in the entire world. The stiff muscles of her arms were gently relaxed, her elbow gave a twinge of pain which turned into a minor tightness and disappeared, and she felt an infusion of energy.

_I've haven't felt so good in awhile. If this potion could be made in our world, I can't even imagine how much money the owner would make selling this stuff to athletes, soldiers, criminals, parents, teachers…_

She stopped her train of thought when she realized someone was talking to her. Apparently she had been staring off into space for quite a while, getting her companions worried that the potion somehow was not effective.

Calynn gave a smile to Raig, who had remained on his knees, and to Dram Bero who was standing watch over Madrale. The Dunmer woman's hands had been tied together with the same length of rope that was used on Calynn, but her arms were in front of her and loosely bound. She was looking at Calynn, apprehension written on her features.

Calynn stood up, feeling buoyed by the energy from the potion. She was surprised when a slight dizziness came over her and her left elbow complained. Raig grasped her right arm and said, "Whoa, not so quick."

_I guess the potion heals you, but isn't a cure-all for fatigue and soreness_.

"Really, I'm fine," she said to the Redguard, who nodded and backed away. Calynn returned her attention to the Dunmer woman in front of her.

"Madrale," she began.

"Please don't kill me, whatever you do," the Dunmer pleaded, all of her maliciousness replaced by fear.

"Well, I wasn't planning on it in the first place," Calynn continued. She truly hadn't thought about killing the woman. The only reason she wanted to talk to Madrale was to get more information about the Bosmer revolutionaries.

Such were her thoughts, so she didn't understand when all three suddenly gazed at her. Madrale's face was filled with hope suppressed with a certain wariness while the men held puzzled expressions.

"Ah, could I speak to you for a moment, alone?" Dram Bero gestured toward the tunnel leading to the door. They began walking, and when the councilor judged they were at a sufficient distance not to be overheard, he began to explain, waving his hands for emphasis.

"I don't know what it is you do in that painting you kept talking about a while ago," he said, alluding to Calynn's metaphor to get them to understand what a computer was. "But here, in the real world, we exterminate those who infringe on our honor. Outlaws and citizens alike _must_ be punished for the crimes they commit. It is how we keep order in the province. For her to have laid hands on you, the Nerevarine, is almost like treason. You cannot let such a misdeed go unpunished."

"Why not? She seems pretty contrite to me, and I doubt she'll attack people again," Calynn argued.

"It is simply not done. There are customs, traditions, to be followed," Dram Bero insisted.

"Look, she came after me, so it is I who should decide what to do with her, correct?" Calynn asked.

"Yes," was Dram Bero's response.

"Then, I say I forgive her and she is free to go. Do you have a problem with that?" She was starting to feel a little irritated.

"Yea—uh—no," he grounded out between his teeth. "But I say you are making a mistake."

"I can live with that," Calynn said over her shoulder as she turned to go back into the cave.

"Calynn." The way he said her name made her stop and turn around. His tone was a mixture of confusion, anger, and something else she couldn't place.

"What?"

"She wouldn't have acted like you. She would have done what was right," he said softly.

"Who?"

"The real Calynn." He swiftly made his way out the door and into the night air, where the dust storm had finally stopped.

* * *

Calynn slowly walked back towards the fire in the cavern, where Raig and Madrale were awaiting her return. When the Redguard didn't see Dram Bero behind Calynn, he cast a questioning glance toward her, but she ignored it and sat down on the opposite side of the fire. Silence hung over the three, all of whom wanted to say something but none of whom wanted to start. 

Finally, Raig could stand it no longer and started to say something.

"So what did—" he began.

"Let's wait until—" Calynn said at the same time.

"Excuse me for—" Madrale was also in the process of speaking.

All three fell silent at once.

"Calynn," Raig began again. "You go first."

"Ok," she said quickly. "Let's wait until tomorrow to decide. Right now, we should go to sleep and get our thoughts in order. Decisions are better made in the morning when the sun's out."

Madrale looked relieved that her head was not going to be taken off that night, but she still seemed suspicious of Calynn's motives for doing what she did. Raig looked disbelievingly at her, his eyes flickering to the door where Dram Bero had disappeared, but he didn't say anything aside from a quick good night as they settled down on bedrolls.

Calynn tossed and turned on hers as she went over everything in her head.

_I want to be merciful, but is that really the right thing to do? I mean, people here place a high value on honor and tradition. What would they think if I let Madrale go? Would that count as contempt of their laws and customs?_

_But isn't Dram Bero overreacting, anyway? Plus, I'm not _that _Calynn, I'm myself._

_I'm in this world, so I have to act like them. Isn't there some saying about being in Rome, act like you're Roman, or something like that?_

_That's just a dumb saying. Follow what you know to be right._

_What _is _right?_

After what felt like an agonizingly long time, Calynn finally fell asleep, exhausted from the night's events and the dilemma now before her.

* * *

_Do not fear_, a voice floated on the air. It was a deep voice, but strangely feminine as well. There was an echo to it, as though whoever was speaking was standing at the end of a long tunnel. 

_You have been chosen, and you were sent to complete your appointed task_.

Calynn suddenly saw images flit across her vision, images of Dunmer and Imperial children playing together, of Bosmer youth practicing archery with Orcs.

_Now go, through the door, to Morrowind_.

To Calynn, it felt like she was having a repeat of the dream in Ald'ruhn. But then, the voice continued.

_You were sent to turn the tide. Doubt not, for I will be with you_.

Calynn jolted awake, her eyes darting to the sleeping figures of Madrale, Raig, and Dram Bero, who must have returned when they were asleep. The fire was dying down into glowing embers.

"Not Azura again," she groaned.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone! This is definitely not my favorite chapter, and very little actually happens. But what happens to Madrale has to be resolved somehow.**

**I now have about 1 week before departure for college. In the meantime, it is my hope that I will finish this story before then.**


	15. Talking It Out

I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.

* * *

**TheFirstHokage: I'm glad you figured out who the Dunmer characters were. Thanks for your review!**

**Nereverar: Thanks. It took me the longest time to imagine what the potion would taste like. Also, I guess there's not much I could do with the half-heard dialogue in chapter 13.**

* * *

From the last chapter… (still in a cavern somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

_You were sent to turn the tide. Doubt not, for I will be with you_.

Calynn jolted awake, her eyes darting to the sleeping figures of Madrale, Raig, and Dram Bero, who must have returned when they were asleep. The fire was dying down into glowing embers.

"Not Azura again," she groaned.

* * *

The next morning, Calynn opened her eyes and yawned. Her companions were still asleep. She tidied up her bedroll while contemplating her decision regarding Madrale.

"I really can't see myself killing her," she mused aloud. "Better to be merciful than sorry."

"Calynn," someone called. She turned to see Raig addressing her.

"I've been thinking," he began.

"Well, that's a change," Dram Bero muttered from under his blanket, where he had buried himself to catch a few more minutes of sleep.

"Anyway," Raig continued, not the least bit flustered by the interruption. "The revolutionaries' goal was to have you killed, correct?"

"Uh-huh," Calynn said. "Wait, how did you know that? You weren't even here when Marasa and Madrale were about to kill me."

"We did a little investigating of our own," Dram Bero added proudly.

"Investigating, eavesdropping, spying, whatever you want to call it," Raig said. "I was surprised to learn how sneaky and quiet our councilor could be."

"And…?" Calynn prompted, sitting cross-legged on her blanket.

"The Ashlanders gave us directions to the cave where their warrior had disappeared," Raig informed her. "It was called—"

"Samaca," the Dunmer put in.

"Right. So we went near the cave to explore a bit, and we overheard the Imperial agents discussing new intelligence they had received," Raig finished.

"After we heard the words 'Nerevarine,' 'Camonna Tong,' and 'kidnap,' we figured we were needed elsewhere," Dram Bero said.

"So how did you find out where I was?" Calynn asked.

"By your screams," they said at the same time, as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"Oh," Calynn said. _Thanks, Dad!_

"Now, back to my question. If the revolutionaries want you dead, and you're sitting right in front of us right now, what happens next?" Raig pressed.

"I don't know," Calynn started to say, then realized that she _did_ know something. She always read a few steps ahead in the quest walkthroughs before she began any quest. At the time, she had skimmed the section on the mission on Samaca, assuming it would be just like any other.

"Well," she began hesitantly. After all, she didn't know whether the quest would turn out exactly the same now that she had come into the land of Morrowind.

"Yes?" Dram Bero was not the most patient Dunmer.

"What was supposed to happen was that I would travel to Samaca and kill the people there. Then, my journal was supposed to get updated, saying that a document I found on the body of the 'bandits' there indicated that they were Imperial agents attempting to undermine a Bosmer revolution. After that, I was to ask the locals about suspicious movements, at which time I would be directed to Khartag Point and a door underwater. I would enter that underwater cavern and clean the whole place out of revolutionaries, and that's the end of the quest."

"So… our next step is to kill the agents?" Dram Bero ventured.

Calynn found the idea horrifying. She didn't want to do any more killing. Also, there was that deadly, blinding flash of light in the game just before she was sucked into this world. If she were killed here, there was no guarantee she would reappear in the real world.

"Hmm, not necessarily," Raig said. Calynn looked at him with hope.

"Since we already know the location of these revolutionaries," Raig said, "we could just go directly there and leave the agents be."

"I say we go with that plan," Calynn said quickly.

"But," Raig paused, causing Calynn's stomach to clench in anticipation. "There's still something that bothers me. Did you know about the alliance between the Camonna Tong and the Bosmer revolutionaries?"

"No, there was no mention of that," Calynn acknowledged.

"And there was no mention of making the Nerevarine a martyr?" he probed.

"No…" Calynn answered, uncertainty in her voice. What was he getting at?

"So there is a possibility that something has changed, and that the nature of the quest is now different?" Raig asked.

"Different? What do you mean?" she asked him.

"It doesn't sound as simple as cleaning out a cavern anymore."

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone! I really don't like this chapter, and it probably confused you all… next chapter will be posted quickly.**

**Sorry to leave you hanging with such a short chapter, but I've been twisting my mind into knots trying to tie all the elements of the story together. Maybe it would've been better to have written out the whole story before posting the chapters.**

**I've already left home, with orientation starting on Monday. Hopefully, enough time can be found to finish this story, which is nearing its end.**


	16. Asking for Directions

I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.

* * *

From the last chapter… (still in a cavern somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

"So there is a possibility that something has changed, and that the nature of the quest is now different?" Raig asked.

"Different? What do you mean?" she asked him.

"It doesn't sound as simple as cleaning out a cavern anymore."

* * *

"You're suggesting that somehow reality has been altered, that somehow my coming here has ripped a hole in the universe, or created a wormhole, or something like that?" 

For once, Raig was stumped. "What's a wormhole?"

"Um, never mind," Calynn said. "But I think you're right to be cautious. After all, nothing was said about Camonna Tong assassins coming after the player, uh, I mean, after me." She felt like her brain was about to explode. Not only did she have to deal with the prospect of being stuck in Morrowind forever, she had the fate of an attempted murderer (Madrale) as well as the whole province of Morrowind in her hands. It was a responsibility she never asked for and never would have expected when she inserted the CD that night.

"Maybe you should go to sleep again and wait for Azura to talk to you again," Dram Bero said, half-jokingly.

"Actually, I had another dream," Calynn remembered. "She said I was to 'turn the tide,' whatever that meant."

"That means you change the direction in which things are going," Dram Bero said.

"I _know_ what the phrase means," Calynn snapped, exasperated. "What I meant was what tide was I supposed to turn?"

"I think I know," a female voice chimed in. All three turned to look at Madrale, whom they had, in the midst of their heated discussion, forgotten was still in the cavern with them.

Calynn swiftly asked her to explain before Dram Bero or Raig could silence her.

Glancing nervously at the Dunmer and Redguard, Madrale said, "Khartag point, as you know, is on the coast, and all coasts experience tides to a certain degree. It is possible Azura was telling you the proper time to go to this underwater cavern. She could have meant the phrase as a double meaning."

"Why are you helping us now?" Dram Bero growled.

Madrale shrugged. "She didn't kill me when she had the chance. Maybe this is something new."

Calynn tried to suppress her smile. Something she did apparently paid off. However, her friends were not as trusting as she was.

"She's already heard too much of our conversation. Let's just kill her and get it over with," Dram Bero said with vehemence.

"I say we continue this outside and deal with her later," Raig said.

Seeing as how she could not sway the Dunmer, Calynn decided to go along with Raig's idea and postpone the dilemma until later.

* * *

Calynn sighed as she curled up in her bedroll, the diminishing sunlight streaking the sky in strange, otherworldly colors above her. She had moved her sleeping bag (if it could be called that) outside so she could see the stars and planets. Although they were unfamiliar to her, they were still somewhat calming. 

After much hand-waving and arguing, the three companions had decided to rest one more night and then head to Khartag point. Once there, they would search for the underwater cavern and then send Madrale to seek out the leadership of the revolution. Calynn didn't want to send the Dunmer woman into more danger, but it was either that or have Dram Bero take the Dunmer's life.

Still feeling slightly conscientious, Calynn fell into an uneasy sleep. _Maybe Azura will come again and make things clearer_.

* * *

_Nerevar reborn_, the summons came. _Why do you seek me?_

Calynn spun around in surprise, trying to find the source of the voice.

"What should I do?" she asked. _Better to get the question out at once_, she thought.

_You must restore the world ere you return from whence you came_, Azura replied.

"How do I restore the world?" Calynn thought in the back of her mind that she was giving off textbook-style questions, but she really did want to know the answer to her questions.

_Know you not how you came to Morrowind_?

"A blinding flash of light, beeping computer, and a vacuum portal thing," Calynn said. She felt she ought to feel more scared to be addressing a deity like Azura, but strangely, there was no fear in her. It seemed as if she was just talking to a friend or a teacher at school.

'_Tis I who called you from your world. You were needed, at the turn of the tide_.

"But why couldn't the regular Calynn do it?" Mentally, Calynn smacked herself. _Now you've done it! You've gone and insulted the goddess, and she probably thinks you're whiny and incompetent_.

_You said it yourself. Better to be merciful than sorry. Your friend the Dunmer said it himself. The real Calynn would have executed the woman, and all would have been lost_.

"Madrale is the key?" Calynn wondered incredulously.

_She will go into the cavern, and you will follow. Much will be said, and much lost. But all is gain in the end_.

"Ok…" Calynn trailed off. Inside, she was saying, _Azura couldn't have picked a more mystifying phrase, could she? Why can't she just say do this, do that, instead of speaking in riddles?_

_Fear not, for I am with you_, the voice got fainter and fainter as a sudden dust storm whirled around them.

* * *

Calynn sat up with a wry smile on her face. Everyone else was still asleep. 

"Dram Bero," she shook him by the shoulder and squeaked when he leapt up and looked wildly around before settling irritated eyes on her.

"What?" He was obviously unhappy at having been woken up.

"I know you were joking, but Azura really came!" Calynn proceeded to outline for him the conversation she had with the goddess.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone!**

**Hopefully this chapter explains a little more fully what has been and is going to happen. Questions, please ask, so I can clarify and improve my writing.**

**I've already left home, with orientation starting on Monday. Hopefully, enough time can be found to finish this story, which is nearing its end.**


	17. Into the Cavern

**I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

* * *

**TheFirstHokage: That's interesting what you're doing with your "story," and I see people are really responding to it as well. Also, I'm glad you're getting into my story.**

**Ethelle Llorak: Well, the reason you don't remember the Samaca quest is that I made it up… So, yeah, that's why it doesn't sound familiar. But this made-up quest is the one Calynn was performing when she was sucked into Morrowind.**

**Nereverar: Thank you for your consistently encouraging reviews. It makes me happy when readers tell me that they're excited about what's going on in the story. Actually, I meant for it to say "ere," meaning "before."**

**Voration: Thanks! I hope you've enjoyed reading.**

**Master.Swordopolis: I take it you didn't like what you read. Would you care to elaborate?**

* * *

From the last chapter… (still in a cavern somewhere outside the vicinity of Khuul)

"I know you were joking, but Azura really came!" Calynn proceeded to outline for him (Dram Bero) the conversation she had with the goddess.

* * *

"You want me to do WHAT?" Madrale stared at Calynn in disbelief. 

"You just have to tell them your money sources have dried up," Calynn said.

"And this will benefit me, how?" The Dunmer woman was clearly unhappy with the plan.

"So that I don't kill you right now," Dram Bero had come up menacingly behind Calynn to glare at Madrale.

"Dram Bero," Calynn tried to reproach him, but he was having none of it, and clearly his intimidation worked, because Madrale nodded her agreement.

"I'll do it," she said.

* * *

"Let's go over the plan one more time, and go over all the details again. We can't afford to overlook something and make a costly mistake." 

All three groaned in unison as Raig made the suggestion. However, they knew he was right, and began to speak of what information they knew.

"To start off, Calynn, the former one, went to Samaca to kill bandits, who turned out to be Imperial agents. The contract was paid for by the Bosmer revolutionaries, who got their funding from the Camonna Tong," Dram Bero summed up.

"And through some accident or work of Azura, I ended up here as Calynn, looking and acting like her excepting the absence of weapons, armors, and all valuables. I meet you two," Calynn nodded at Raig and Dram Bero, "and we decided to come to Khuul to investigate the disappearance of an Ashlander warrior, supposedly linked to the Imperial agents in Samaca."

"We came under attack from the revolutionaries," Raig took up the story. "But they were finally slain. Calynn went to Ald'ruhn, where she happened upon a mysterious scroll mentioning a 'final piece.' She returned to Khuul, where the Camonna Tong was lying in wait for her."

"We failed in our attempt to kill her," Madrale spoke up. No one tried to stop her from speaking this time. From the time of her capture, she had been cooperative and helpful, giving them no reason to distrust her.

"There is a complicated web of alliances and enmities here," she continued. "As long as Calynn lives, the revolutionaries have little leverage with their people. So, it is essential she remains alive, which is the reason why I'm going into the cavern at Khartag Point first, to check out the leadership and their positions."

"Is that all? And everyone is clear on the plan?" Raig asked. Three heads nodded. They were ready.

* * *

The journey to Khartag Point proved uneventful, with the occasional scrib and shalk, which were irritating but not much of a danger. Once the four people reached the shore, they split up into pairs, Dram Bero with Calynn and Raig with Madrale, to search for the underwater cavern door. At the agreed upon time, the sun about halfway down to the horizon, they met again at a piece of ground jutting out into the sea. 

"Found anything?" Calynn asked Raig. She was tired from the trekking and irritated by the sand that kept blowing up into her eyes.

"We believe we've found the door," he replied. "It's located a little to the west of Khartag Point."

"The tide has almost receded," Dram Bero observed. They made their way to where the Redguard and Dunmer female had found the door.

"Well," Madrale inhaled deeply. "I hope to see you again." She dove underwater.

Calynn leaned over the edge of the water and could faintly make out Madrale forcing the door open against the water pressure. The door shut behind the Dunmer with a whoosh and all was quiet again.

"Now we wait and see," Dram Bero said. They settled on the grass, nibbling on bits of bread from the local merchant.

Calynn couldn't help but worry about what was going on in the cavern. _How is Madrale doing? Did she find the revolutionaries yet? Is she still alive?_

* * *

Three hours later found Calynn pacing the ground restlessly. 

"Where is she?" she asked her companions. "Where is she where is she where is she—"

Calynn stopped in the middle of her question when the door creaked open. The tide had gone out for the night and there were about five yards of dry land between the cavern door and where the water began.

"Calynn, hide!" Raig hissed at her as the door swung wide open. Too late, Calynn recalled that their plan was to hide behind a rock outcropping back on shore when people emerged from the cavern. Because the door faced the sea, whoever came out would have to turn around to face the three friends, hopefully giving them ample time to prepare for whatever had come. However, during her pacing, Calynn had wandered out into the area in front of the door, and now she was in full view of whoever had opened the door.

_Uh-oh. I always do stupid things like this_, Calynn thought.

"Hail to the Nerevarine!" The cry sounded from within the cavern.

_Well, this is surprising. What's going on here?_ Calynn asked. She peered into the dark cave and discerned Madrale and some Bosmer coming out. They came out of the cavern and fanned to either side, while Madrale alone approached Calynn. The Wood Elves were dressed in identical dress: coarse common pants with red shirts and black vests.

"Calynn, I did as you instructed me," Madrale reported. "After about an hour of exploring, I came upon a watchman, who immediately brought me to the leaders. I told them the Camonna Tong ran out of money to supply them, at which point they were about to execute me. But then after I fed them the tidbit about you being right outside their doorstep, they were eager to come out and see."

"You mean---?" Calynn asked.

"Yes," Madrale guessed at her question. "They were not angry that you weren't 'martyred.' I think they prefer to have you alive, for some reason."

"Why?" This single word was most important to Calynn. After all, hadn't the Bosmer revolutionaries plotted with the Camonna Tong in the first place to have her killed? Why the sudden change of heart?

"Nerevarine!" The chorus of voices rang out. A blond-haired Bosmer male took a step toward Calynn and Madrale.

"We would like to offer you what hospitality we can, and resolve the situation," he said politely.

Suddenly, Raig and Dram Bero flew to her side from their hiding position, flanking her.

"This is not a good idea," Raig whispered into her ear.

"Probably not," she whispered back. "But what choice do we have except go inside? There's got to be at least twenty of them out here, with more in the cavern. We're only three, or four counting Madrale."

"I believe your friend the goddess Azura said you would follow Madrale inside," Dram Bero said half-jokingly.

Noting the impatience shuffling of feet on the part of the Bosmer, Calynn raised a placating hand.

"I will come with you, provided you act courteously towards my friends here," she said, gesturing at the Redguard and the two Dunmers.

"We promise," the blond-haired Bosmer said solemnly.

_What am I getting myself into?_ Calynn wondered to herself. _Did I really think I could get the revolutionaries to turn back just by talking to them? Why did I come here in the first place?_

_You came because you believed you could make a difference_, another voice in her mind answered.

_How?_

_You're the Nerevarine, who's supposed to unite all people. _You _figure it out_.

The Bosmer male led them along winding passages until Calynn lost track of how many left turns and right turns they made, and which turn came after which. She began to think she would never leave this cavern again. Suddenly, the Bosmer who were silently trudging beside her stopped at an unseen signal.

_What's going on?_ Calynn asked, puzzled. Fear began to well up in her chest, pressing against her heart and lungs. Before she had time to think any more, her three companions were shoved up against her in the center of the passageway, so that they were surrounded by revolutionaries on all sides. In the few seconds of confusion with all the jostling, the Bosmer had all somehow managed to draw their bows, which were now aimed at the four friends.

"Come now, friends, what is the meaning of this?" Dram Bero raised his hands, trying to speak peaceably.

"No more of your eloquent words, Dunmer," one warrior growled.

The leader came to the middle of the circle.

"You did not think I would truly welcome you, did you?" he smirked.

_Well, I was hoping for that_, Calynn said silently.

"And you, woman," he turned to Madrale, who quaked under his gaze, "you and your little friends failed that easy task."

"So," he smiled smugly at them, "now you pay for your mistakes."

"What mistakes?" Raig spoke for the first time since entering the cavern.

"Of trying to stop us in the first place. We will own Morrowind, and our culture will spread to all corners of the world."

"What an interesting idea!" Raig replied. Calynn thought he had gone crazy with the thought of impending death, but then she noticed he was discreetly signaling to Dram Bero with his hand while distracting all the others with his words. She surreptitiously glanced at the councilor and saw his hand on the pommel of his Nordic claymore. Raig was similarly posed. Calynn prepared her hand to move instantly to the silver claymore at her side. She couldn't see what Madrale was doing, since the Dunmer was behind her.

_So we're going to try to fight our way through this?_ Barely had this thought flashed through her head than the Redguard and Hlaalu councilor both unsheathed their swords in a single motion. Calynn followed a second later. Fortunately, they had the element of surprise on their side, and managed to knock quite a few bows out of the Bosmers' hands. But they were badly outnumbered, and this began to show as the four friends began to be separated, each battling several in intense sword fighting.

Calynn didn't even try to think of her moves, but followed her body as she mechanically parried, thrust, and slashed her way through the sea of bodies. It did not occur to her to wonder how she hadn't been struck once yet. A cry of pain broke through her daze. She turned to see Dram Bero going under the vicious hacks of a couple revolutionaries.

"No!" Calynn cried and attempted to spring towards the Dunmer. But more revolutionaries leapt in her way, and he was obscured from her sight. A few seconds later, Madrale succumbed to the attacks. Raig seemed to be holding his own at the moment. As minutes wore on, Calynn began to feel her muscles aching, but she noticed her enemies were flagging too. She made her way to the Redguard and the two began fighting back to back. There seemed to be no end to the people coming to attack them.

_At least the passageway is so narrow that only three Bosmer can come at us at once_, Calynn found herself thinking. Her attention was drawn back to the melee at hand when a blade came too near her face for comfort. She ducked under that strike and thrust with her claymore as hard as she could at her opponent. He toppled, taking her weapon with him on the way down. Calynn quickly tried to grasp her iron dagger, but couldn't remember where she had put it.

_So much easier in the game. Just press a button and you switch weapons_. Even her thoughts were becoming breathless now.

While she was preoccupied with her thoughts, an axe came and struck her on her right pauldron, throwing her quite a distance back. Calynn landed on the ground, stunned, shaking her head to clear her vision. She saw Raig being overrun.

_So this is how it all ends. Seeing the people I have grown to love fall one by one_.

Suddenly, a bright flash of light filled the entire cavern, originating from behind her. Dozens of Bosmer warriors fell to the ground, screaming, "AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" as they breathed their last. Calynn also felt the worst pain imaginable all along her back from her neck all the way to her torso. Amidst the carnage, she saw Dram Bero, Raig, and Madrale, all writhing under the same agony.

* * *

**Thanks for reading and reviewing, everyone!**

**If you have questions, please ask so I can clarify and improve my writing. Comments, predictions, and complaints are always welcomed.**

**Ok I don't know anything about tides, but I assume they come in during the morning and go out during the evening. Is anybody an expert on tides? (Or just anyone who knows more than I do.)**

**Sorry it took so long to update. I've been busy with orientation and classes (whew there's a LOT of reading to do!), but I'll do my best to keep this story alive. It's very close to being done!**

**What do you think of this update? Is it moving too fast? Is it believable? Did you expect this to happen?  
**

**  
**


	18. Confusion Galore

**I don't own the copyright to Morrowind or any of its characters, locations, etc. Everything belongs to Bethesda, except Calynn.**

**I apologize for updating in such a dilatory manner. Happy Thanksgiving!**

**The Knight of Laughs: I am very happy that you like the story. Enjoy.**

**Ethelle Llorak: Your thoughts on Azura made me think (I'm posting as I write, which I have read is not a good way of doing this) and I revised the plot to this chapter so it would make more sense. Thanks!**

* * *

Suddenly, a bright flash of light filled the entire cavern, originating from behind her. Dozens of Bosmer warriors fell to the ground, screaming, "AIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" as they breathed their last. Calynn also felt the worst pain imaginable all along her back from her neck all the way to her torso. Amidst the carnage, she saw Dram Bero, Raig, and Madrale, all writhing under the same agony.

* * *

_Hot. White. Blinding._

_Pain_. It was all that filled her conscious thought.

"Calynn."

_Owwww_.

"Calynn."

_What?_ She grumbled in her mind, annoyed.

"Well done." A resonating female voice said.

_Azura?_

Calynn opened her eyes, not even realizing she had closed them, and with her hazy pain-filled vision, she saw a softly glowing figure. No doubt it was Azura. Here in person, though, she looked much more like a deity than in the game.

Tentatively raising her eyes to the goddess's face, Calynn was rewarded with a benevolent smile. With that glance, all the pain was gone. Feeling silly for doing so, but doing it nevertheless, Calynn got up and knelt at the feet of the goddess.

"You don't need to kneel to me," Azura said gently.

"Oh."_That was a dignified reply_.

"You have done all that you have been brought to do. You may return to your home."

Calynn felt relief rush through her, and she was glad she was still kneeling, or she would have fallen from the loss of tension in her muscles. However, something still bothered her.

_What is it? Something's nagging me in the back of my mind_. She cast a look around the cavern, her gaze taking in her fallen companions. It hit her like a wave of frigid water.

"What about them? What about Raig and Dram Bero and Madrale?" Looking anxious at them, she saw they weren't moving.

"A-A-Azura?"

"Child, what do you wish?"

"Are they dead?"

The goddess did not answer, but only bowed her head.

"You… you _killed_ them?" Calynn whispered. _This _cannot_be happening_, she thought. _Azura is one of the "good guys"! How can she go around killing my friends? Oh no, what if she kills me too?! I can't believe I've escaped the crazy wood-elves only to be faced with a goddess turned murderess…_

Believing that she was about to die anyway, Calynn decided to give Azura a piece of her mind. Ignoring the deity who was opening her mouth to speak, she let out all the tension, fear, uncertainty, and anger that had been building up over the past several days.

"I can't believe you would do something like that! You were supposed to be good and benevolent and nice and… and… and… a fairy godmother who fixes the wrongs in the world. And now you come and_shazzam!_ All of a sudden kill all my friends? You don't deserve the people's respect, and if I ever get out alive I'll tell them that you're so evil that you're, uh… um…" No words came into her mind to fill that blank, so Calynn was left with the ringing silence in the cavern.

Timidly looking at Azura, Calynn saw to her surprise that Azura was not angry at all, nor did she look like she was about to smote anyone any time soon. In fact, Calynn thought the goddess looked a bit sad.

"I didn't kill them," was the soft reply.

"Yeah well it still doesn't matter," Calynn found steam again. "It was horrible for you…"

She paused. _Wait a minute… did she just say she didn't kill them?_

"Wait, what? Say that again?"

Azura repeated, "I didn't kill them."

Calynn felt the flush creeping up her cheeks. If Azura spoke truly and Raig, Dram Bero, and Madrale died by some other means, what would Azura think of her for accusing her of murder? But, there was one important thing to ask first.

"Then who did?" Calynn wanted it to sound conciliatory, but it came out as more of a challenge.

Azura spoke no words, only looking a little behind Calynn.

Calynn whirled around and caught sight of a group of humanoids in robes, bunched together like a herd of cattle defending itself against a wolf pack, quaking in fear.

_They look familiar…_ Frowning in puzzlement, Calynn didn't realize that her countenance appeared very fiery.

"Please forgive us, Arch-Mage, we only meant to aid you," a Dunmer came forward, eyes cast to the ground.

_Arch-Mage? Are these people from the Mages Guild then? And is that.. yes it is, it _is _Ajira!_

Seeing her superior peer at her, the Khajiit shuffled a distance from the group towards Calynn. She too looked at the ground.

"We did not wish to harm the others, but we had no other choice," the Dunmer said again. Calynn couldn't recall his name, but he seemed to be from the Balmora Mages Guild.

"How? Why?" Calynn spluttered, feeling utterly foolish for doing so. "What?"

"Calynn is good friend," Ajira explained. "Sugar-Lips tells Ajira Calynn needs help. Ajira gets many allies, come help Calynn."

"And this," Calynn gestured to the crumpled corpses, "This is your idea of helping?"

_I know I should be grateful to them for saving my life, but they just slaughtered everyone else indiscriminately. Oh, and let's not forget that excruciating PAIN they put me through!_ Her eyes must have kindled with anger, because the mages huddled together even more, if that were possible.

"Calynn," Azura's voice came from behind her. "Let them explain themselves."

_Fine fine, take their side_, she grumbled inside, but she grudgingly waved at the Dunmer, signaling him to begin his tale.

* * *

**This is a convenient place to stop for the time being. Once again, I'm sorry I haven't updated in so long, but I promise to finish this story. It's almost at an end, and I'll need to think of another storyline/topic to write on. I am hoping to focus on the life of one of the NPCs before the actual gameplay begins. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!**


	19. The Decision and the Artifact

**Surprise! Another chapter from this guilt-ridden author who feels terrible for not updating in more than 2 months and is now trying to make up for it.**

* * *

"Calynn," Azura's voice came from behind her. "Let them explain themselves."

_Fine fine, take their side_, she grumbled inside, but she grudgingly waved at the Dunmer, signaling him to begin his tale.

* * *

"After listening to Journeyman Ajira," he began. "We gathered provisions for our journey and quickly made our way to the Silt Strider, where we learned of your destination quite easily. Once in Khuul, we only had to ask around, for the townspeople were very keen to discuss the comings and goings of the three newcomers to the remote village. That, and they were eager to see us go on our way, having had a long tradition of suspicion against strangers, especially mages."

"How did you find this cavern?" Calynn asked when the Dunmer paused for breath.

"Though studied in the arcane arts, we are still skilled at using our eyes and at tracking," an Altmer, Estirdalin was her name, answered. "You and your companions did not trouble yourselves to hide your tracks, so we were able to follow you with little difficulty."

"At the sound of battle, we hastened inside," the Dunmer took up the story again. "Noting the overwhelming odds against you, we knew our only course of action would be to cast a very powerful spell, draining Health at a distance. We combined our efforts to kill all those villainous Wood Elves, erm, begging your pardon," he added, remembering that Calynn herself was a Wood Elf.

"It was not our intention to harm you in any way," Estirdalin murmured. "We believed Wraithguard would have protected you. But alas, a pity for both you and Morrowind, it appears you no longer have possession of the valuable artifact."

Calynn was about to reply when another question dawned on her.

"So you knew the spell would kill everyone save me, assuming I had on Wraithguard?" she asked.

"In our estimation, yes," the Dunmer answered. "I deeply regret that we did not know you did not have Wraithguard, or we would have chosen a less drastic measure. Forgive us for causing you the agony."

_Is that all they care about? As long as I'm not hurt? I mean, that's very nice of them to be concerned about me not getting hurt, but what about Raig, Dram Bero, and Madrale? Don't they matter?_

"What about my friends? Would you have lessened the spell's intensity for them?" Calynn's voice was rising with each subsequent question. "And why are they dead and I am still alive?"

"Calynn is good friend of Ajira," the Khajiit spoke. "Ajira tell Calynn. Calynn has more health points than others, so Calynn can withstand spell longer."

Calynn still wanted to know the question to her previous questions. "And Raig? What about him and the councilor and Madrale? Do you care about them?"

Silence greeted her angry inquiries. The mages returned to looking at their feet.

_So, they only care about their own people. How typical! To everyone here, the only people who matter are those of their own kind or faction. There's no unity, no Morrowind-ness. Even the coming of the Nerevarine could not change that. But why did Raig, Dram Bero, and Madrale have to die in order for me to see this sad truth? They died because of me, because I hadn't the sense to hide when the door opened. It's all my fault, these three souls parted from their bodies forever…_

A sob rose in her chest and throat while tears threatened to spill from her eyes. Calynn had only known these people for a few weeks, but they were as real and dear to her as her friends on Earth.

"Sometimes, much must be lost in order for gain to be had," the soothing yet resonating voice of Azura said. "Did I not tell you there would be sacrifices?"

"I didn't know you meant _them_. Please, let them live. Can't you wave your hands over them and bring them back to life? Please, I'll do anything!" Calynn didn't think to stop the words until they left her mouth.

_Uh-oh, I just made an unconditional promise. What if she makes me stay in Morrowind?_

"Will you be willing to stay here forever and lose all you have in the world?" the goddess asked her.

_Great, just my luck. This must be Murphy's Law in action._

Calynn didn't trust herself to answer. Throughout her journey, she had held on to the hope that she could return to Earth and this would be a bizarre memory to be taken out and mulled over when she was back, safe in her own home. But then again, she felt it was her blunder that caused these three heroic individuals to die.

"What is your decision?" Azura prodded.

A chill wind suddenly blew through the cavern, extinguishing the few torches that had remained lit during the melee. The surroundings became dark until the glow emanating from Azura grew brighter and the walls were illuminated again.

"I'll stay, if that's what it takes to make them come alive," Calynn whispered.

The goddess smiled.

"You are a generous young woman, Calynn," she said. "You have learned much during your stay here, but it will not be necessary for you to remain."

"But my friends…"

"They live."

Calynn looked at her companions once more, and true to Azura's words, the three were stirring.

"The valor you have just shown has brought them back. Calynn, it's time for you to return home," the goddess urged, a strange glimmering beginning to form in her hand. The air started to whirr past Calynn's ears, the air currents growing stronger.

"But… now? Can I at least see them awake?" Calynn found herself begging. She wanted to talk to them one more time, and maybe to even hug them, despite how Dram Bero would most likely protest.

_Will I ever be able to come back? Or will it be as I imagined, only a memory, nothing more?_ She thought wistfully. Her mind drifted unbidden to _The Chronicles of Narnia_ by C.S. Lewis, in which the children were eventually told they would never be able to return. _Do I truly want to come back, though?_

"It is best this way," Azura was saying. "After you have left, I will repair the damage done by the revolutionaries, and Morrowind will return to its normal state."

Her voice grew fainter as a doorway opened on the cavern wall, looking very much like the one that first drew Calynn into Morrowind on the night she stayed up late to finish the Samaca quest.

* * *

The incessant ringing of a telephone broke through Calynn's consciousness, waking her from what seemed to be a dream. She blinked open her eyelids to see sunlight streaming through the blinds and her computer on sleep mode.

_I'm back? And it's morning already?_ She wondered. She made her way to the computer and lightly nudged the mouse to reactivate the screen. When the screen brightened, she saw that it was the Morrowind menu on the screen. Nervously, she clicked "Load" and then waved the cursor over the last saved game. It said she was somewhere outside Vivec. Calynn, glancing over her shoulder at where the door had appeared before, clicked on the name of the game with a trembling hand. Once it loaded, she immediately opened her journal. It read:

First Seed Day 1

I told Ingol to order some more paper, because we were running out more quickly than I thought possible. Who knew that being the Master of the Fighters' Guild would require so much paperwork. I had thought it was all about being the best fighter, with skills and cleverness. I guess not. Someone's knocking at the door. I suppose some new recruit wants to join.

First Seed Day 2

Now that I've finished reviving the guild charter, maybe I'll get some rest. Doubt it, though. There's probably some impossible mission I'll have to go on. Something always happens in Vvardenfell, and then the nobles will call on us to fix the problem. It's a good way to make money though, especially serving out bounties on people who, half the time, don't even know they have a price on their heads.

First Seed Day 3

I knew it. A new mission came in today, and I don't think any of the members on hand at the moment want to handle it. I'll take it on myself. In about an hour, I'll start my journey to Balmora. From there I'll head to Caldera. The orders from the Imperial representative said to ask the ebony mine workers about their safety in the mines.

_That's strange,_ Calynn thought. _This is not what I read before. What happened to the Samaca quest?_

Lost in her thoughts, she almost didn't hear the phone ringing. _Oops, forgot to answer it the first time_.

She opened the door to her bedroom and picked up the phone in the hallway.

"Hello?"

"Hey sis, did I wake you up?" It was her brother.

"Uh…"_Kind of?_

"Well there was this really weird thing that happened last night," he said, not waiting for her response. "I was playing Morrowind, right…"

_Uh-oh_.

"… it froze and the next time I looked— "

"Wait, could you say that again?" Calynn had to ask. She had missed the beginning part of his explanation.

He sighed. "Ok, so I was playing Morrowind last night, and I just got this quest from the Fighters' Guild to go to this cave called—"

"Samaca," she said.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" he sounded surprised. "Well, anyway, the moment I clicked on the name Samaca, the computer froze. I had to restart it and everything, but Morrowind wouldn't even work for the whole night. I thought the entire game crashed, but it worked again this morning. But when I went back to my game, the whole quest was gone. In its place was something about Caldera and the ebony mines."

Silence reigned on the line.

"Uh, Calynn? You still there?"

"What, oh… yeah, I'm still here," she mumbled. "Just surprised, is all."

"How'd you hear about Samaca? Were you doing the quest too? You didn't mess it up for me, did you, sis?" he teased, laughing at the supposed impossibility of his accusation.

"Well, um, do you have time for a long story right now?" _I actually think I did mess it up for him, and probably for everyone else in the world too_.

"Actually, I have to run to the store soon," Calynn's brother said. "But this afternoon, I'll call you back. Hey, by the way, you might want to recharge your cell phone. Seems like your battery died or something, because it kept going to your answering machine. Bye!"

"Bye," she said automatically. _My cell phone? Where _is_ that thing?_ A horrible thought crossed her mind, one that she did not want to acknowledge. She ran back to her room and searched for her phone; it was not there. The suspicion growing stronger, she turned to her computer and right-clicked to look at her inventory. Although all her weapons and possessions (Wraithguard included) were present, there was no cell phone.

As though drawn by some unseen force, she began guiding her character to the Fighters' Guild in the Foreign Quarter and entered the headquarters. As the interior was loading, Calynn inhaled deeply.

_I wonder if Raig will be there. But this time he won't be blood and flesh, just… a character_.

"Welcome, friend." It was his voice. Calynn felt a pang of regret at her inability to answer him.

"Look on the table," the Redguard said. _That's weird… never heard that being said in Morrowind before_. She maneuvered the Wood Elf to look at the table on the left. She gasped.

There on the table was a shiny silver object on a glass platter. It was her cell phone. Next to it was a sheet of paper with some writing on it. She opened it and read,

"In memory of the great deeds of the Nerevarine, who overcame much adversity to save Morrowind from invading revolutionaries. Though none live in this world who may remember it, let this artifact be a testament to her doings. For ages to come, may the people remember to call on her for succor during Morrowind's times of greatest need. I, Azura, do hereby testify to the truth of these words."

THE END

* * *

**At long last, Calynn's journey comes to an end, as does my mine through my first FanFiction story. Thank you, reviewers and readers alike, for your encouragement and time.**

**For the previous journal before Azura's alteration, see Chapter 3.**

**Did I end too abruptly? Was it too cliché/corny/cheesy at the end? Overall, what did you think of the entire tale? Comments, questions, constructive criticism are appreciated.**


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